I found this article challenging. So did several Monday readers, making it the feature article of the week.
Go ahead and read, and think really hard about this. Then, I’ll have a few comments. Here it is:
Why Minorities Think You’re Racist
Now, a few comments:
1. I always think it’s someone else.
I liked how the author put that out there. It’s very easy to think someone else is racist, but very difficult to identify in ourselves. Maybe you’re more or less challenged than I was, but it’s certainly worth giving some weight to as you think through this.
2. Marginalized – a big word, but an important one.
It may be true: we may never have made a specific practice of giving preference to someone based on their race. But, we may be ignorant that it happens around us. I guess for me this is the biggest piece of searching. What am I missing? Of what things am I ignorant that I should be more aware? I’ve been helped greatly by perspectives of many black authors and pastors in the past several weeks.
If we never plead, “God, help me to see the things that will make me more effective”, then how do we think we’ll ever grow?
3. How are you challenged after reading this? (I meant it to be a question without an answer. YOU answer it.)
Think. Is it possible for you to be unaware of critical realities as you shape your thinking? What does this article tell us about relationship?
Act. Think about the importance of relationship in all the issues we’ve seen pop up over the past several months. What might that inspire or challenge you to do? Could you at least start by reading a voice from outside your “camp”?