A National and Local Reckoning on Race and Faith
By Brad Perry, Co-Founder of The Public
I am feeling a range of emotions this morning as I reflect on the horrific and disturbing images that we saw from the Capitol building in Washington D.C.. One of the emotions that I am not feeling is surprise. The events that we saw were not random and unfortunately they were not the work of a “few bad apples”. The violence, looting, disregard for core democratic principles and institutions and yes, death, occurred yesterday, on the Christian holy day of Epiphany no less. The day where Christians recognize the magi, Gentile men of wisdom and stature who were also likely men of color, traveled long distances to come and worship the birth of the Prince of Peace, the child Jesus who came for the lowest of people as much as the rich and privileged.
Yet, on Epiphany 2021, we witnessed mostly white Christian men of ignorance and lies come from all over the country to descend on the nation’s capital with their maniacal racism and blind following of the most divisive President in American history. The events that unfolded yesterday were a conflation of so many sadistic elements that have been allowed to fester and grow over the last decade. I and many associated with The Public have been called Marxist, communist and un-Christian because of our views on race. Marxists believe in the violent overthrow of the government. We do not believe that as an organization. We believe that history matters, we believe the foundation of teaching history is to tell the truth and we believe that we as a country have not yet lived up to our ideal that “all men are created equal”.
We also believe in the teachings of Jesus, the one who fought injustice and hatred with peace, love and truth. Because we believe that white supremacy is still rampant in our country and community today, we have been presumed to be followers of some alternate reality. Because we believe in the insidious reality of white privilege and that white people, notably white evangelical Christians, are often so fragile when it comes to dealing with any truth of race and racism that we would dare speak publicly and confront this plague on the Christian Church that we must be agents of some deep state socialist agenda.
I think back to the terrible events in Charlottesville, where right wing white radicals came out in mass with torches objecting to the removal of a Confederate Statue. President Trump said there were good people on that side. A woman died that day just as one died yesterday in the storming of the Capitol. I think back to President Trump calling out to the Proud Boys, a white nationalist terrorist organization, at one of the debates to “Stand back and stand by”. Many of those same Proud Boys that were in Charlottesville on that sad day in 2017 followed President Trump’s orders from his rally yesterday to march on the Capitol and to use “strength” to take back what they believe was stolen from them.
There was a “stop the steal” rally this past weekend in downtown Franklin where hundreds of Williamson County residents led by local politicians and Christian pastors who were not happy with the results of the Presidential election. I understand that many of these people then attended the rally in Washington D.C. I encourage those leaders who are Christian to repent. Senators Blackburn and Senator Elect Hagerty both of whom claim to be followers of Christ have supported these efforts as well. I call on them as our state leaders to repent of their poor leadership as well. I concur with noted Christian thinker and historian, Jemar Tisby when he states, “They said critical race theory is the biggest threat but in reality Christian Nationalism is and has been the biggest threat not only to Christianity in the United States but to democracy as well.”
Finally, I have been reflecting on the image of a white man striding confidently and seemingly undeterred through the Capitol building yesterday with a huge Confederate Flag resting on his shoulder. That long time symbol of hate now mirrors a much newer vile symbol wrapped in a similar package, the Trump flag, which I have to witness every day as I leave my neighborhood to be confronted by these tokens of racial destruction up and down Murfreesboro Road (Highway 96 East).
Not only can you walk through the Capitol in Washington D.C. holding a symbol of racism, hate and murder but somehow we have to embrace the reality that The Daughters of the Confederacy own the center of our town. The Confederate soldier statue with its Confederate flag on the side, praising the glory and honor of the treasonous and racist southern insurrection of 1861 has pride of place and prominence in the “best place to live in America”, if you are white… I once again, call on the Daughter’s of the Confederacy to kindly remove that statue from our town square. I personally repent for the continuing reality of white privilege in our country and community today. I recognize I benefit from the same twisted privilege that I witnessed that ran roughshod through Washington D.C. yesterday.
On the same day that we should be celebrating the election of a godly man, Ralph Warnock, the second African American elected to the United States Senate from the south since Reconstruction, I repent of the ongoing reality of white supremacy. That same supremacy that can so easily elude justice for Jacob Blake, so flippantly walk into the seat of Congress and take possessions of our elected leaders, walk back outside and brag about that theft, the same white supremacy that allows our President to tell these perpetrators that he “loves them” and “they are special” must be called out as evil and wrong. I grieve for all people of color in our community today who have to keep asking, “How much longer?”
The events from yesterday that we all have to reckon with remind we why we started The Public two years ago. Racism is alive and well not only in America but right here in Franklin, Tennessee. Racism is at the heart of this national tragedy, this insurrection attempt, and President Trump, though the face of it all, has strategically allowed the flames of racial hatred to grow. We are all at a different place on this continuum of racial justice as we seek to become more and more intentionally anti-racist.
I encourage all of the citizens of Franklin and Williamson County to do some soul searching and to take a step toward love and racial equity today whatever that might be for you. I personally and we at The Public will continue to ally with our brothers and sisters of color in Franklin to peacefully stand against racism in all its forms in our community, country and world. We are committed to continue to teach and educate about the reality of our racial history and our racial present. We will continue to amplify the voices of our black and brown friends and neighbors ultimately to the end that we can be a more peaceful, equitable and loving and whole town.