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
Why Racial Reconciliation Matters
Rachel Held Evans invited Grace Biskie to reflect on racial reconciliation on her blog this week. Grace’s perspective is an important one to hear. Check out Church Stories: A Plea to Engage in Racial Reconciliation. From the article: The problem with disengaging is that it’s not what God intended for us. I believe God expressly…
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
Part 9 (of 15): Peterson on White Privilege
Assessing Jordan Peterson’s 12 Rules for Life by Greg Boyd “The degree to which the terrible part of the world manifests itself in your life is proportionate to how insufficient you are….If you got your act together completely, maybe all the suffering would disappear from your life, or at least all the unbearable suffering.” Jordan…
As We Remember MLK
If you’ve never read Martin Luther King Jr’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail, you should take the time to do so. He wrote the letter to leaders of of the white churches in Birmingham in response to their public criticism of the civil disobedience that resulted in his arrest. It’s discouraging how relevant his thoughts are to current…
Listen and Learn: A First Step Toward Reconciliation
Jesus Christ is not just the Lord, Savior and Messiah of the Jews: he is the Lord, Savior and Messiah of all people. Through Christ a kingdom is being established that tears down tribal walls between races and re-unites and reconciles people together in the love God. Paul makes the point most forcefully. In Ephesians…
The Coming Kingdom & Racial Conflict
In the book of Revelation, we see a glimpse into the future. John says he saw, …a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And…