Peace, When There is No Peace: Devon Dollahon
*The sources that are cited throughout this post are bracketed numbers, and you can find the original sources at the end.*
I was hesitant when I was asked to write this week’s harvest post, both because many people know more than me about the events which have been occurring the past few weeks and because, frankly, as a white guy, I should probably be doing more listening than speaking right now. However, perhaps my experience from the Wesley might be useful to other white Christians right now who are reacting to the riots and unrest which America is facing. During my years there, I was forced to confront the racist attitudes I had and to learn the importance of approaching political issues not from a partisan stance but from a Christian one. It was a slow transition brought about by teachings and sermons as well as listening to my friends about the experiences they had. Right now, I see some of the responses that are preached in churches or espoused by well-meaning Christians, and I remember how I responded years ago with other killings.
The other day, I heard a pastor vehemently denounce the rioting and violence which has cost many lives since George Floyd died. And rightly so. Violence is anathema to the Prince of Peace. But when the pastor led us in prayer and prayed for peace, it felt hollow because he never prayed for the countless Americans who are also suffering unjustly right now. So many white Christians are quick to remark how tragic the recent deaths of innocent black men have been, ignore any implications those deaths may have on our justice system, and then grieve terribly over the rioting and looting which has ensued. Yes, the looting and deaths which have occurred from it, both by the rioters and by cops, are terrible, but our fixation on the riots while ignoring the entire cause for them shows a denial and refusal to confront racism. We are quick to call for peace but slow to acknowledge the injustice built into so much of our society. Jeremiah once warned a corrupt and greedy Israel that
“They have healed the brokenness of My people superficially, saying ‘Peace, peace,’ But there is no peace.” [1]
In 2014, when Michael Brown was killed, I was mad. I was mad at news outlets for riling up public opinion and creating racial discord when I thought everything was fine. I was mad that what I thought was peace was disturbed. But it wasn’t peace. It was only superficial, and I only saw it as peace because of my own ignorance.
What was peace for white Americans was, in fact, corruption that hurt black Americans, and it took listening to stories my friends at college told to realize that. That should be our first response. We need to skip past trying to force a fake peace on people and, instead, listen to what they are trying to tell us. How many people have you talked to about race who are from different cultures, neighborhoods, or economic levels? Listen to your friend who recounts his/her experience of being picked on in school for not being white or black enough. Listen to your friend who couldn’t date the person he/she wanted to, is routinely pulled over for no reason, or has been followed around in stores. Consider what it is like to fear for your life knowing that if you go jogging and stop to get some water, if you accidentally pass a counterfeit bill (or are suspected of doing so but ultimately innocent), or if you try to protect your home from invaders busting your front door down, you could be killed by the people who should be protecting you. [2] The very least we can do is “weep with those who weep.” [3]
Please don’t stop there, though. If you do, you may be tempted to say these are just anecdotes. The stories that my friends told me convinced me that many people still had racist attitudes, but I would still not have said that we have a problem with our justice system, prison system, or anything else. It took being willing to watch a documentary [4] at the Wesley to get me to start looking into the facts behind racism. And there are a lot. The 2016 Census shows that the average black American household only owns 8-11% of the wealth that an average white household does [5], and this gap is widening, not closing. [6] The 2010 Census shows that while blacks are 13% of the population, they constitute 40% of prison inmates. [7] They also were 42% of death row inmates in 2013. [8] The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows there are consistently twice the amount of unemployed black Americans as white Americans. [9] Black communities receive less funding for schools, [10] have less access to healthcare, [11] and have higher crime rates. There are obvious and drastic differences between the prosperity that white communities and black communities enjoy, as well as a vastly disproportionate incarceration rate.
Why is that? Why are black and other communities of color being hurt so much worse than white communities? We tend to say things like, “There are just more black criminals proportionally than whites,” or “It’s because of a sub-culture of violence.” But what is actually being said there? Have you stopped to think that those are just statements insinuating that black Americans are just naturally more likely to be criminals? Maybe we should consider what’s going on in our society as a progression of the last few decades instead of treating it like it exists in a vacuum. We know the war in drugs was initiated to disrupt anti-war and black communities; we know that, for decades, people of color have been pushed into poorer neighborhoods through a process historians call redlining; and we know that through the ‘80s, ‘90s, and 2000s, politicians from both parties got votes by playing on people’s fears of black criminals and have been instituting policies for stricter punishments all while our prisons continue to grow alarmingly quickly. Current studies show unequal treatment, as well. Black students are 3x more likely to be suspended than white students. [12] Black individuals are given fewer opportunities for new houses. [13] Black males have 20% longer sentences than white males for the same crimes. [14] Innocent black people are 50% more likely to be convicted for murder than innocent white people and 12x more likely to be convicted of drug crimes than innocent white people. [15] Black drivers are 20% more likely to be stopped by cops, [16] and black men are 2.5x as likely to be killed by cops. [17] Please look these up. Please check for yourself. You will be hard pressed to find any data seriously challenging the existence of racism while there is a MOUNTAIN of evidence that it exists. We need to WAKE UP. How can we profess to love our brethren in the body of Christ if we don’t even take the time to consider why their communities are hurting? Protesters chant “black lives matter” because, for most of us, black lives don’t matter enough to google “is systematic racism real?”.
I understand, though, that it’s hard to confront racism in our culture or lives. Firstly, we are very loyal to our political parties, sometimes at the expense of the body of Christ. I know I used to be more likely to listen to an atheist Republican than a Christian Democrat. Secondly, we are afraid of the guilt that might come with acknowledging racism. The idea of racism as a sin is often considered disproportionally horrible, so we are afraid that if we do something racist, we are now a racist and abominable person. But the reality is that racism can be forgiven just like any other sin. In addition, racist statements nowadays are less likely to be KKK precepts (though blatant racism still definitely exists) and more likely to be expressions of apathy or subtly linking black Americans with criminality or fear. Those thought processes can be addressed if we critically examine ourselves, and a racist action or statement does not define who we are. Thirdly, it is difficult to face racism head-on because if what all these people are saying is true, we are left with a painful reality. It is painful to realize that so much is wrong with our society and so many people are unjustly killed or suffering.
Though it is painful, we must be willing to face it because black Americans don’t get a choice in the matter. We must be willing to face the pain of it to recognize what needs to be changed. Police won’t stop killing unarmed black men until Americans in general confront our irrational fears of black men. Poor neighborhoods won’t become better until how we treat people of color changes and, as a united Church, we take the initiative to help. The Church, and our society, will not be united and will not have true healing and peace until we act, first and foremost, out of love. Despite all the suffering that has occurred, “love covers a multitude of sins.” [18] But if we insist on superficial platitudes, if we ignore the cries of our brethren because they make us uncomfortable, if we are so afraid of sin that we don’t address it, our hypocrisy will make us “whitewashed tombs.” [19]
1 Jeremiah 6:14
2 Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor respectively
3 Romans 12:15
4 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5895028/
5 https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2016/demo/wealth/wealth-asset-ownership.html
6 https://www.epi.org/blog/the-racial-wealth-gap-how-african-americans-have-been-shortchanged-out-of-the-materials-to-build-wealth/
7 https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/rates.html
8 https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2014/06/race-and-the-death-penalty/373081/
9 https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/08/21/through-good-times-and-bad-black-unemployment-is-consistently-double-that-of-whites/
10 https://www.brookings.edu/articles/unequal-opportunity-race-and-education/
11 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK24693/
12 https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-discipline-snapshot.pdf
13 https://www.huduser.gov/portal/Publications/pdf/HUD-514_HDS2012.pdf
14 https://www.ussc.gov/research/research-reports/demographic-differences-sentencing
15 https://research.msu.edu/innocent-african-americans-more-likely-to-be-wrongfully-convicted/
16 https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/21/us/police-stops-race-stanford-study-trnd/index.html
17 https://www.prisonpolicy.org/scans/police_mort_open.pdf
18 1 Peter 4:8
19 Matthew 23:27-28
Devon Dollahon was a member of the Wesley Foundation for 5 years. He served as a ministry intern for a year before moving on to grad school to pursue master’s in electrical engineering. He has an infectious smile and has the best dance moves.