We run our website the way we wished the whole internet worked: we provide high quality original content with no ads. We are funded solely by your direct support. Please consider supporting this project.
An Uneasy History
Although Abraham Lincoln is widely regarded as a tireless champion for the equal rights of African Americans, there are many indications that he held views that we would find shocking today. It’s important to understand the reality of our history to truly appreciate the challenges we face in the area of racial reconciliation today. In her New York Times article entitled A Separate Peace, Kate Masur delves into parts of our history that are sometimes hard to comprehend.
From the article:
Those interested in the history of abolition and racial equality would find few incidents in Lincoln’s presidency as dispiriting as the president’s Aug. 14, 1862, meeting with a delegation of five black men from Washington. It was dispiriting then as well: to the dismay of those hoping the Civil War would lead to full citizenship for African-Americans, Lincoln informed the delegation that “you and we are different races” and proposed that the five men be progenitors of a black colony the government would establish in Chiriquí, a region of what is now Panama.
Image by rodolfo. Used in accordance with Creative Commons. Sourced via Flickr.
Category: General
Tags: Racial Reconciliation
Related Reading
Podcast: Overflow Episode 3—Mass Incarceration, Racism, and Restorative Justice
Dan interviews Dominique Gilliard about his book Rethinking Incarceration: Advocating for Justice That Restores. http://traffic.libsyn.com/askgregboyd/Episode_0375.mp3
Be the Change Now
Ghandi once said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” It’s a profoundly Kingdom teaching. It seems to me, however, that few people adopt Ghandi’s philosophy. It’s far easier to focus our attention on how others should change. It’s far easier to spend our energy assigning blame for the problems of society…
Reversing Babel
Several generations after the flood, we read in Gen 11 how humans were still living in one locale and had one common language and culture. Then someone came up with the brilliant idea that they should construct an enormous tower that would reach “to the heavens” in order to make a name for themselves and…
Speaking of Tragedies
Since we’ve been reflecting on recent tragedies and the varying responses to them, we thought we would add this voice to the mix. This article from the New Yorker points out the differences in media coverage between the Aurora shootings and the shootings at the Sikh temple in Wisconsin. From the article: Sadly, the media…
A Step Toward Racial Reconciliation
In this sermon clip, Greg, as a representative of a white man in America, asks for forgiveness of people of color for all the harm that white America has done. This is not about disparaging whiteness. This is simply about acknowledging the truth of our heritage so that we can make a way for healing,…
Podcast: How Much Hope Should We Have that We Can Find Unity Amid So Much Diversity?
Greg looks at Galatians 3:26-29. http://traffic.libsyn.com/askgregboyd/Episode_0370.mp3