-
Anti-Racism Committee
To help oversee all of our ongoing antiracist initiatives, we have established Christ the King's Antiracism Committee, comprised of Jim Bryan, Mary Anne Collins, Janine Christiano, and Jon Stotts. This committee, a subsidiary of the parish's Peace Through Justice ministry, will meet monthly to consult with those who are involved in current projects and to provide direction for future initiatives, beginning in September (date TBD). This committee will also host regular forums and town hall meetings to solicit involvement and guidance from the wider parish community.
Anti-Racist Reading Group
We hosted our first anti-racist reading group this past Tuesday, August 4. Through a combination of smaller breakout conversations and a large group discussion, we examined the arguments and definitions offered by Ibram X. Kendi's How to Be an Antiracist. This was a energetic and meaningful session.
There will be another reading group (Zoom link; registration required) on from 7-8:30pm on Tuesday, September 15 to discuss Richard Rothstein's The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America. This book chronicles the U.S. government's history of residential segregation, demonstrating that racism is rooted not primarily in personal prejudice but in racist laws and policies. The book is widely available online in a variety of formats, as well as locally at Parnassus and Barnes & Noble. Please reach out if you have any trouble locating or purchasing a copy. (I'll be reaching out to Parnassus to discuss the possibility of a discount.)
However, because How to Be an Antiracist is such a foundational text for ongoing conversations about racism, I'll be hosting another reading group from 7-8:30pm on Tuesday, September 8 for those who were unable to make it to the August session. (Zoom link; registration required.)
Upcoming Books on Our Anti-Racism Reading List
(In No Particular Order)- Bryan Massingale, Racial Justice and the Catholic Church
- Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
- Dorothy Roberts, Fatal Invention: How Science, Politics, and Big Business Re-create Race in the Twenty-First Century
- Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow
- James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time