In the weeks since George Floyd’s death, our hearts have been opened to the oppression and grieving of the black community. We have seen peaceful protests and burning cities. Our minds have been puzzled by the riots and we may have even felt anger over the destruction of places that we frequent. The topics of our conversations have changed. We have sought to understand the issues facing people of color, especially those who are black, and how our position in the world informs our view of today’s racial issues.

On June 17, 2020 the Fran Park Center for Faith and Life hosted a live webinar about racial inequality and on June 24, the Park Center convened a special Courageous Conversation with individuals who participated in the webinar. On June 25, we launched a 21-Day Racial Equity Challenge which includes suggestions for readings, podcasts, videos, observations, and ways to form and deepen community connections. Will you join us? If you have not previously registered for the webinar or Courageous Conversation, please complete the form below to receive links to weekly check-ins and additional selections.

 
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KERMIT MOSS is the Interim Director of the Center for Black Church Studies and a Ph.D. candidate at Princeton Theological Seminary. His research interests are in the intersection of theology, identity, spirituality, pneumatology, urban youth, and hip-hop/pop culture. In addition, Kermit currently serves as pastor of Christ Church United Methodist in Paterson, NJ.


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SUSHAMA AUSTIN-CONNOR is the founding program director of the Black Theology and Leadership Institute (BTLI) at Princeton Theological Seminary, as well as the program administrator for Continuing Education and the Center for Black Church Studies. Over her 15+ year career in religion, media, and program management/development, she has been a regional manager for the national offices of the United Church of Christ (UCC), the Protestant chaplain at Wellesley College, and the Administrative Director of the Summer Leadership Institute at Harvard Divinity School (HDS).

ERIC D. BARRETO is the Associate Professor of New Testament, at Princeton Theological Seminary. Prior to coming to Princeton Seminary, he served as associate professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary, and also taught as an adjunct professor at the Candler School of Theology and McAfee School of Theology. As a Baptist minister, Barreto has pursued scholarship for the sake of the church, and he regularly writes for and teaches in faith communities around the country. He has also been a leader in the Hispanic Theological Initiative Consortium, a national, ecumenical, and inter-constitutional consortium comprised of some of the top seminaries, theological schools, and religion departments in the country.

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WESLEY AVRAM has served as the Pastor of Pinnacle since 2009. He has served in this role in Presbyterian congregations in Bryn Mawr, Penn., and Wilmette, Ill., as College Chaplain at Bates College, in the Clement–Muehl Chair of Communication at Yale Divinity School and as Assistant Professor in Yale’s Institute for Sacred Music. He is the author of Where the Light Shines Through: Discerning God in Everyday Life (Brazos, 2005) and Anxious About Empire (Brazos, 2004).

 
 
 

The Challenge

  • Pick one of the resources listed every day for 21 days.

  • Diversify your understanding by doing some of each.

  • Track and reflect by using the planning tool below.

  • Share your reflections at the end of the challenge.

  • Pray for the places you are challenged and for those you are learning about whose lives may be different than yours.

  • Log your progress.

Watch

CBS News Analysis: 50 states, 50 different ways of teaching America’s past, Ibram X. Kendi reviews current history curriculum production and use across the U.S. (5 minutes)

What Kind of Asian Are You? Humorous two minute YouTube video that illustrates the utter silliness of the way many white Americans interact with Asian Americans. (2 minutes)

Birth of a White Nation, Keynote speech by legal scholar Jacqueline Battalora, offers a blow-by-blow description of the moment the idea of, and word for, “white” people entered U.S. legal code. (36 minutes)

13th, Netflix documentary by Ava DuVernay about the connection between US Slavery and the present day mass incarceration system. (1 hour, 40 minutes)

The danger of a single story, TED Talk by Chimamanda Adiche, offers insight to the phenomenon of using small bits of information to imagine who a person is. (18 minutes)

How to deconstruct racism, one headline at a time, TED Talk by Baratunde Thurston that explores patterns revealing our racist framing, language, and behaviors. (10 minutes) 

Indigenous People React to Indigenous Representation in Film And TV, Conversation with a diverse range of Indigenous people by FBE about  media depictions of Indigenous people, Columbus day, and Indigenous identity. (15 minutes)  

What Being Hispanic and Latinx Means in the United States, Fernanda Ponce shares what she’s learning about the misunderstanding and related mistreatment of the incredibly diverse ethnic category people in U.S. call Hispanic. (12 minutes) 

Tyler Merrit Project: Before You Call (3 minutes)

Listen

Code Switch, hosted by journalists Gene Demby and Shereen Marisol Meraji

Black Like Me, host Dr. Alex Gee 
Warning: this podcast contains some explicit language, and may not be suitable for all listeners.

Scene on Radio – Seeing White Series, host John Biewen and collaborator Chenjerai Kumanyika 

TED Radio Hour – Mary Bassett: How Does Racism Affect Your Health? host Guy Raz speaks with Dr. Mary T. Bassett, Director of the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University 

Here & Now – Without Slavery, Would The U.S. Be The Leading Economic Power? host Jeremy Hobson and author Edward Baptist

NPR Morning Edition – You Cannot Divorce Race From Immigration journalist Rachel Martin talks to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas

Pod Save the People, Activism. Social Justice. Culture. Politics. On Pod Save the People, organizer and activist DeRay Mckesson

For Children & Families

CNN/Sesame Street Racism Town Hall
Family Reunion (TV Show on Netflix) A lighthearted, family-friendly series, this show exposes the inner workings of a black family who moves back home to small-town Georgia after living in Seattle.

Becoming (Netflix documentary) Join former first lady Michelle Obama in an intimate documentary looking at her life, hopes, and connection with others as she tours with “Becoming.”

Civil Rights Activity Book

Ain’t I A Woman Activity This activity involves listening to three speeches by famous black women (links included in document), reading a brief narrative, and then engaging in a reflection guided by the questions and prompts provided. 
A Kids Book About Racism by Jelani Memory

Special thanks to Eddie Moore Jr., founder of 21 Day Challenge, as well as Marguerite Penick-Parks and Debby Irving.