Are You a Racist?


Illustration of anti-racism sign



Few would admit to being a racist, yet we all have racist tendencies. If we are white, we are often unaware of the privileges we take for granted. We are generally not stopped by a policeman for no reason or looked on with suspicion or fear. Our children are generally safe in good neighborhoods and good schools. In applying for a job, we don't have to worry that our skin color might be a deterrant.

When African American athletes kneel during the National Anthem to protest racism, some of us are a little uncomfortable with their defiant stance. We think our country has changed from the time of segregation and civil rights marches, but white supremacists are still found in many parts of the country and the Ku Klux Klan still lurks in the South. Many neighborhoods are still segregated.

We have a long way to go to eradicate racism in our society. Yet many are afraid of speaking out, of breaking the racial divides. We fear rejection, retaliation, and ostracism. We would rather not get involved. Yet the parable of the Good Samaritan reminds us of what Jesus asks of us. 

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops recently offered a prayer service for racial healing. It contains a prayer that is worth saying:

Wake me up, Lord, so that the evil of racism finds no home within me.
Keep watch over my heart, Lord, and remove any barriers to your grace
that may oppress and offend my brothers and sisters.
Fill my spirit, Lord, so that I may give services of justice and peace.
Clear my mind, Lord, and use it for your glory.
And finally, remind us, Lord, that you said, "blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God." Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
  Limping to God I come to you, God, weather-beaten and limping, asking for forgiveness for all the times I have failed to be faithful and attentive to all those around me, especially the elderly who have run the race, the poor, the lonely and abandoned, who need my care and concern.     Is there any hope for these old bones? What will it take to change my limp into a surge of energy and a ready step? Teach me to become more caring, more responsive, more aware. Give me eyes to see and the will to act on my good intentions.   Water my dried up spirit and shriveled body, expand my shrunken heart. Give me eyes to see what you are leading me to do even as my bones creak and my legs become unsteady. Make me remember that I am here to serve, to listen, to be ready to be your hands and feet today.   Barbara Mayer, OSB    
Read more
Image
    “Wonderfully Made” When I took a college English course, our first assignment was to write an essay about whether we would rather lose our sight or lose our legs. It was a thought-provoking choice. If we became blind, we would miss seeing our loved ones and all the beauty of our world. If we could not walk, we would be hindered from traveling and moving around without help. I chose to keep my eyesight since I love to read and write and enjoy the variety and beauty that surrounds us.   Of course, I’m glad I didn’t have to make that choice in real life, but it was a thought-provoking assignment. It made me think about how much we take our bodies for granted. I began to think about all the organs, veins, arteries, canals, nerves, and bones we have in our bodies and how they all work together to keep us alive and healthy. It is not until we lose one of them that we realize how magnificent we are, created in the “image and likeness of God.” God loves each and every one of us as if
Read more
Image
  Overcoming Discouragement Sometimes discouragement and failure take over our lives, and we cannot seem to crawl out of our hole. Even if in reality they are not a true picture, we can be blinded by the seeming darkness.  It often takes another person to uncover what is hidden from us and to see through the cloudy picture.  I am reminded of a story about Bill Wilson, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. He tells of how he felt his dream of starting a group for people with drinking problems was not going anywhere. Then unexpectedly Father Dowling, a disheveled priest, came to his door in the middle of a snowstorm. Bill’s caretaker told him that a “damn bum” was at the door. Bill was tired but agreed to see him and in doing so had his “second conversion experience.” Bil and Father Dowling talked way into the night, and Bill told of his “high hopes and plans, and spoke about his anger, despair and mounting frustrations.”  It turned out that the elderly priest had had similar feel
Read more