Advocacy & Social Justice

Delegation examines firsthand the root causes of migration in Honduras

A delegation of 72 faith leaders and immigrant justice advocates returned from Honduras this week following a week of meetings with grassroots and religious partners to better understand the root causes of migration that have led thousands to flee Honduras.

Setting things right

The legal exoneration of the man who killed Antwon Rose last summer has sent yet another shock wave through our community. It seemed inconceivable that a man shooting and killing an unarmed boy who was fleeing from him could be found innocent of wrongdoing. Yet that is precisely what the jury determined. It is claimed that their decision hung on a single factor, that the killer was an on-duty police officer. In Pennsylvania, police are legally given discretionary latitude to shoot at anyone they deem to be a danger to themselves or to others. Yet what is “legal” and what is “right” can be very different.

Eunice Poethig, a champion for women

The next U.S. presidential primary election will feature at least three viable women candidates — a development that would have no doubt thrilled Presbyterian minister and leader, Eunice Poethig. The Presbyterian Historical Society recently completed the processing of Poethig’s papers, and they illuminate her advocacy work in expanding the numbers of women and people from other marginalized communities serving as leaders in ministry and civic life.

Find your lane, and go as fast as you can

Ali Michael, an author and the co-founder and director of the Race Institute for K-12 Educators, says her main task as a white person working primarily with other white folks toward racial justice is “to find my lane and go as fast as I can — in my lane.”

‘Just row’

Thirteen hundred people are gathered in this Eastern Iowa community through Saturday for the 20th White Privilege Conference. Attendees were treated Thursday to a pair of thoughtful keynote addresses and the first of what will be their choice of more than 100 workshops.

One physician’s take on ‘the healer’s power’

Dr. Stephen Nelson, a pediatric hematologist at Children’s Hospital of Minnesota, had some alarming statistics for those attending his Thursday workshop “The Healer’s Power: How Whiteness Kills” at the White Privilege Conference.

National Council of Churches calls for global effort to combat racist violence

The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA joins its hearts and voice to those who have suffered in the mass shooting in Christchurch, New Zealand. This horrible tragedy is a toxic combination of gun violence, Islamophobia, anti-immigrant xenophobia, and white racist nationalism.