“I think every person that calls themselves a leader, a preacher, a policy maker of any kind should ask and answer the question in their own lifetime, how will my people stay on this earth? How will they be educated? How will they be schooled? How will they be housed? And how will they be defended? The answer to these questions will create the concept of enduring nationhood because it creates the concept of enduring responsibility. I am saying whatever the solution is, either we are in charge of our own destiny or we are not in charge. On that point we got to be clear, you either free or you a slave.”
-Dr. John Henrik Clarke
February was Moral Monday CT’s “Month of Resistance”… resistance to the rhetoric of superiority, arrogance and bigotry. Resistance to the practice of xenophobia and isolationism. Resistance to the idea that this nation’s greatness must hedge on old, archaic tropes of white supremacy and oppression. Resistance to the noise filling up our social media platforms, cable news networks and print media. Resistance to their oversimplified references to urban America and carnage with no real social analysis, historical grounding or structural understanding.
What’s before us is a clear mandate to lead forward to a better society, a better nation, a more perfect union. Throughout American history, faith voices have led the charge for social reform and change. And today is no different. We must move forward to where faith points the direction. What we are to be about has something to do with opportunity or the lack of opportunity…the conditions and resources that spark healthier, more vibrant communities. Poverty, lack of access to quality education, housing, transportation, healthcare, prison and mass incarceration remain obstacles for so many, limiting quality of life and success.
Help us to be one leading voice in the struggle for justice and liberation!