Ida B. Wells was a black woman who worked, wrote, and organized her whole life for a federal anti-lynching law, for women’s suffrage, for the equal rights of both her race and gender.
Reconciliation
Ida B. Wells
By Guest Author in Reconciliation March 7, 2008
Tagged as black history, Ida B. Wells, Reconciliation, women's history
Tagged as black history, Ida B. Wells, Reconciliation, women's history
Sorting out “Normal”
I don’t think my experience (Norm) is drastically different from that of most African American men. I was asked to share a few examples to illustrate part of the way my “normal” life is different than the life of a white person, like Greg.
Believing the Best
About six months after Norm joined our (otherwise white) pastoral staff, a young white man in our congregation began writing letters and leaving voicemail messages for both of us about a number of things that bothered him.
Different Worlds
No matter our race, when most of us try to comprehend a world so vastly different from our own experience it can lead to feelings of doubt and even further mire us in mistrust. For example: “How can that person believe what they do about the police? That doesn’t line up at all with everything I’ve experienced in life!”
Following the Example of Jesus
February is Black History Month, and as a church we want to recognize the importance of remembering and celebrating the contributions that African-Americans have made in the formation of our country and society. But we never want to end there. We want to pursue a Kingdom vision of reconciliation that goes way beyond anything our culture could ever imagine.