When it comes to talking about race, I hear a lot of white folks proudly mention that they are colorblind. Not in the since that they are vision impaired but that they do not notice the color of one’s skin, or at least that it does not matter. I’ve even heard some Christians quote some good ol’ Galatians…
For we are all Children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. (3:26-28)
What would it look like if we were to take this passage literally? I guess we could do away with all gender specific bathrooms. That’s right, there is no male or female, we are all the same, so let’s share bathrooms! There are probably some fellas in the house saying amen to that, but there is not a female in her right mind who would want to share a bathroom with guys who tend to either leave the seat up, or if they do put it down, they pee all over it. It seems to me that for the most part people are not gender blind. People are fine with seeing the difference between males and females and respecting the differences.
For some, when they talk about being colorblind they are referring to the dream of Martin Luther King of a nation where people are not judged on the color of their skin but by the content of their character. It would be nice if this were the case of us white folks, but the reality in our society is that being colorblind simply means that we have no problem with people of color as long as they act like us.
Recently I visited an overwhelmingly white campus and struck up a conversation with one of the few African American students about her time at the university. She told me that overall it was a good experience as long as she assimilated into the white culture! In other words as long as she ‘acted white,” tolerated white music (Lord help her), and didn’t talk about issues of race she was fine.
I find it interesting in the Church that it is mostly white folks that talk about the need for a multicultural (or multiethnic) church. I do not know a lot of African American preachers trying to recruit white folks to their congregations so that they can reflect the multiethnic worship experience we find in Revelations 7. Why is that? After some reflection I think it comes back to the colorblind problem.
Multiethnic churches started by white people are often very white in their power structure (white folks calling the shots), in the way they worship, etc. Being a diverse church or university does not mean that you simply add people of color into the mix, but that you carve out a space for them, in all of their gifts and inadequacies so that they can truly be a part of the larger community.
Too often white folks are in a rush to “use their gifts” which often translates into being in charge. If you truly desire being a part of a multicultural church attend a predominantly African American or Hispanic congregation and just show up. Do not worry about using your gifts, but rather show up and just be. Learn the songs, get to know the people, and most importantly… eat the food. As you build relationships and earn the right to be heard allow them to invite you to use your gifts. This will take longer but taking the role of a learner and taking the time to really grow roots will set the stage for real reconciliation.
Unity does not mean uniformity. The goal of reconciliation is not colorblindness, and sameness. Rather the goal of reconciliation is gaining an appreciation of that which is different and allowing those differences to speak life to us. We are all created in the image of God and we all have gifts and we all have inadequacies in and of ourselves. We are made for community but not just the homogeneous gathering of people we find every Sunday at 11am. We are made to be with and learn from people of every race and background.
Chris is a Recruiter and the Academic Director for Mission Year. He is also a part of the Simple Way in Philadelphia. He is a writer and a speaker. For information about having Chris speak, email Jen Casselberry.
“What White People Can Do about Racism” is a collection of thoughts by Chris Lahr. Through this blog series he hopes to touch on lessons learned from his journey of living in a small predominantly white town in Indiana to living in a city (Philadelphia) where white people are currently the minority. Continue onto the next topic in the series here.
To read more about multicultual congregations, also check out Shawn’s blog here.
6:42 am
You’ve got to be kidding me. Do you have any idea how racist this sounds? Praytell, how does someone “act white”? What does “white music” sound like? How ignorant this sounds.
8:03 am
Really? Chris was using the words of the student he was speaking to. Before you write this off as racist, maybe you should talk to some people of color about it. You might be surprised how “white” mainstream American culture truly is.
8:10 am
“People of color”.. Good god. The point is that saying something is “white” is just as bad as saying something is “black”. Language like this is why there is still racism. Creating an “us vs them” mentality only contributes. And in the name of “God”.. Give me a break.
Looks like it is both the student and the blogger- the student being black doesn’t exempt her from being racist.
11:41 am
Great blog on a hard to talk about problem. In looking at multi-ethnic churches, you reminded me of Spencer Perkins and Chris Rice’s book, More than equals: Racial Healing for the Sake of the Gospel. Church leadership should reflect the congregation! Also, churches can have the problem of suburban churches starting church plants in inner city neighborhoods without raising up local leadership. Thanks for starting the conversation! I know students in our program appreciate having conversations such as these in our classes to really understand the core of issues such as racism and how to bring about racial reconciliation.
11:55 am
I did want to address the conversation above. I think the point that Chris was getting at is that the goal needs to be reconciliation, which does not mean that we all become one big melting pot. We cannot face the things that separate us without calling them for what they are! Instead this goal of reconciliation comes through understanding each other differences, appreciating those differences, creating a safe place for all people to live in unity and ensuring that this does not come through a monolithic culture (for example: melting pot theory, the American culture that people talk about today). When Paul is talking to the Galatians, as is quoted in Chris’s blog, he is not telling people to ignore their differences. No, he is telling them to not allow those differences to cause separation in the body. Indeed he also tells the church that we are each a part of the body, different with a unique purpose, which I think can easily be applied to this conversation. Point blank, by saying that talking about the issues is creating racism is also saying that we need to ignore the issues. You can deal with the issues unless they are talked about.
2:10 pm
Whitney, I agree. You can’t deal with the issues unless they are talked about. I think when it comes to racism, we need to first and foremost stop defending ourselves and calling out other people. This is what stops others (and perhaps ourselves) from opening up conversations about race in the first place. If everyone is afraid of being called a racist or, on the opposite end, if everyone is only concerned with being discriminated against, then the realities of what racism is and does in the real world become falsely advertised. And anyway, if everyone in the world is racist then how do we all still not understand one another when we speak about it? Sharing the painful commonality should bring nothing but compassion- not ridicule and harsh words (esp. about race! like I said before: it’s bringing a bad reputation to the word) Anyway, I am just trying to say…let’s admit we are racist, stop calling out what is and isn’t racist, and continue to search for peace among our vast, vast differences.
4:01 pm
Thanks for a succinct yet well written intro to a difficult topic. I’m with you 100% and am going to share this post with our students.
4:22 pm
I didn’t say ignore differences or anything about ignoring the problem- the issue I have is with the language used. There is no such thing as “white” music or actions, nor is there such a thing as “black” music or actions. Constantly reinforcing stereotypes sets the entire movement back.
5:44 am
Welp, there you have it. I wonder why some people even feel a need for reconciliation? Even the very term seems to imply that a wrong or an injustice was caused and someone is “reconciling” themselves to another. Is there a current injustice? Is there a need for reconciliation? Do people today still cause an injustice onto another? If so, is this injustice a racial issue or an issue of character and virtue? As Chris pointed out (and then quickly moved on from) : “…referring to the dream of Martin Luther King of a nation where people are not judged on the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” There seems to be a general disregard for the Natural Law which I believe is what Dr. King is referring to. The content of one’s character can oppress someone, not the color of their skin. The content of one’s character can produce violence, not the color of their skin. The content of one’s character can exclude others, not the color of their skin. Whether someone has skin that is white, black, yellow, or brown it is not their skin but the content of their character that is an issue. It seems a post like this simply calls into question Dr. King and God’s Natural Law. To accuse a “white” person, or even more extreme a “white” church to simply have poor content of their character because they are white is a gross underappreciation of a human being. Just like simply “seeking” more ethnicity to make a congregation more “colorful” is a gross underestimation of a human being. Would you really use someone like that? Would you really devalue someone in that regard? Simply to “have” someone in your midst does not mean that they will make you or your congregation better. If that is your intent throw in the towel, you have already lost the race. If that is your intent you have mistaken someone made in the Image of God for a tool regardless of your skin color. If that is your intent, it is easy to know the content of your character!
7:45 am
Just out of curiousity has anyone ever heard someone who is not white say that they are colorblind? Because I haven’t. I think it is easy for white people to say this because they don’t face the same barriers that come from discrimination/prejudice based on their skin color that people with darker skin often run into. In regard to the comments above that there is no such thing as “white” or “black” actions or music; it is true that not all people with the same skin tone neccessarily like the same things or act the same way. However, if you visit several churches, some predominately white and some predominantly black, I think you will find distinctive differences in the worship services. Our cultural and ethnic backgrounds shape the way we speak, think, act, and experience the world. This obviously doesn’t mean that we are cookie cutters based on our race, but it does mean that we sometimes have values, traditions, and preferences that are influenced by our ethnicity. The young woman mention above in the blog is not alone in feeling that she has act differently in order to be accepted by people who don’t share her ethinic background, that is the reality for many people. And since in the U.S. the dominate culture is “white” that is what many non-white people feel they must assimilate to. We need to learn to respect and value our differences, not deny that they exist.
8:59 am
Charity,
I appreciate your thoughts when you said, “We need to learn to respect and value our differences, not deny that they exist.” However, the example that you gave of the young lady who felt like she had to “act differently” is an isolated case. It seems that to build an argument for “racism” you would have to pit one ethnicity against another. However, I do not think that you could make a blanket statement that all churches or all people of a certain color are either oppressive or oppressed. This young lady’s situation seems to be a choice that she made. For example, I used to manage an apartment complex in an area of town that is predominantly African American. My roommate at the time liked to go for walks after work and on several occasions he was physically confronted and called racial names by some folks who also lived in that area. He had a choice to make, I believe, whether or not he would try to assimilate to a different culture. So, it seems like what you are saying is that because this young lady was a part of a University that was predominantly Caucasian she was forced into an unjust situation. I would disagree. She made a choice to fit in just like my friend had a choice to fit in. The same may also be the case for a Caucasian family if they decided to join a church that is predominantly African American. Would you expect them to try to “fit in” with a potentially different culture? Or would you expect that same culture to accept them even if they had very different backgrounds? To me, it seems that people should have the right to choose as they wish. To mandate that people change or don’t change is unnatural and unjust. I also think that there is a natural instinct to try to get to know those around us and learn to associate with varying differences like the young lady at the university. Other friends that I had in my old neighborhood were Caucasian and did not chose to “fit in” and they got mugged, beat down, or insulted on a regular basis. It is still their choice…
10:36 am
Anthony,
I said that the young lady mentioned in the blog above was not alone, meaning not an isolated case. I could cite many other examples I just didn’t feel the need to list them all. I agree that assimilation is a choice, but it’s a choice that is made because differences are not accepted and valued. For some people the choice not to assimilate can mean greatly diminished economic and social opportunities, it costs a lot more than just not fitting in. Certainly racism and oppression are not limited to any specific race, you can find it in any ethnic group if you look for it. What happened to your friends and what happened to the young lady mentioned are both examples of differences not being accepted, neither should diminish the other. I was trying to make the point that, both presently and historically, white people have had the most power in this country. Therefore they have had the most ability to oppress other races and to limit opportunities for those who don’t assimilate to their culture, and this power has been used time and time again. . No we can’t pin the blame for oppression and racism on any one group, but we also can’t deny the history of oppression in our nation and the ripples of it that extend into today. In order for true unity and reconciliation to take place people have to have the freedom to choose not to assimilate without being penalized for it, and that is what Christians, regardless of their race, should be working for. Pretending to be colorblind is a barrier to that. I think that is the point that Chris is trying to make.
5:14 pm
I agree with Anthony. What you guys are suggesting is that instead of having group A assimilate into group B, group B should assimilate into group A. Either way, you are still assimilating someone and diminishing one ethnicity. Bringing token minorities into a church isn’t going to make your church any better or prove anything to anyone, other than you are viewing them in terms of their race and what their “diversity” does to make you feel better about yourself. It’s very selfish and self-congratulating.
9:05 am
@Anthony I agree that the young lady had a choice about conforming to the dominant culture or not. However, the question is what would her circumstances look like if she did not. In this case, it seems we do not know, but I would venture to guess she may not be accepted by others, that she may feel isolated. The real obstacle is the lack of tolerance for people who do not conform to the dominate culture.
@lol I don’t think that the goal should be assimilation to the minority culture, and I believe that Charity was talking about instead a culture where people don’t need to assimilate to one another but are free to reflect the culture that they were raised within/have adopted/etc.
1:09 pm
I think there is a big difference between having token minorities in a church in order to appear “multicultural” and seeking a diverse expression of the kingdom of God in our churches by carving out space for a multitude of traditions and expressions.
8:57 am
sorry for the delay in responding to you all… the conversation has been great. I have been busy and my info has been hacked… I will hopefully respond soon and write another entry this week. Peace Chris Lahr
9:11 am
Again thanks for the responses to this blog. It is a very important conversation. Soon I will write a blog about racism, what it is and how it is manifested today in our society. How we define racism is very important… is racism just being mean? is it caused by our use of language? is it systemic? We will look into this soon.
A really good book that looks deeply into colorblind racism (even has a chapter on whether or not African Americans are colorblind) is, “Racism without Racist: Color-Blind Racism and Racial Inequality in Contemporary America” by Eduardo Bonilla-Silvia.
8:00 am
I was just talking to my canadian friends recently who talked about how people’s view of America is as a melting pot, but canada prides themself in diversity and valuing the differences of one another. this discussion is so interesting to me, i even had my friend read this post and he shared a story that i think highlights a lot of what is being said. he met a man who was an indigenous indian working for a white organization, a white boss. i believe he was a custodian. my friend was talking to the boss and the indian and the boss was making comments about how he doesn’t see him as an indian. he is just “one of them.” later my friend asked the custodian if people said that a lot. he said it was very common and he asked him how he responded. he said he would always say thank you. my friend then asked how he wanted to respond and he said, :“well actually i would love to tell them that i am an indian!!” the point being is that people of different ethnicities, skin colors and cultures actually are usually proud of who they are so why would we ignore it or say they are just one of us!! i have been going to an all puerto rican church for 11 years and i am white and speak hardly any spanish. but guess what, the folks in my church are my closest friends, my family, my neighbors. we vacation together, celebrate together, share life together, and support each other. i appreciate their differences and they appreciate mine. i have never felt like i have been asked to change. i am trying to learn spanish for obvious reasons, but that does not change who i am. why did i choose a church where there were no other people “like me”….well, becasue in the kingdom of God, there is such richness in diversity. i personally find it boring to be in a church when everyone looks the same. one of my daughters even made a comment to me when we were visiting my in-laws church…“why is everyone here white?”“ i was surprised becasue i had never even heard her make a comment about the color of someone elses skin. but just like a fish doesn’t know they are in water until they are pulled out of the water my daughter didn’t even know whe was immersed in diversity until she was pulled out. my girls do appreciate the differences of their black friends, hispanic friends and asian friends. for them, they mostly talk about the difference in hair…but that is just the stage they are at. they love hearing other languages, they love our style of worship in our church, they love that they get invited to parties like chinese new years and quinceaneras, and they love puerto rican food, chinese food, soul food, indian food, vietnamese food, or just about anything they have tried. to me, that is the beginning of making a stand against racism. raise your kids to appreciate all people!