No Christian truly feels at home in the world.…
5 Reasons You Should Celebrate Black History Month
It pains me to see people overlooking Black History Month because Black history (just like Hispanic, Asian, European, and Native history) belongs to all of us — black and white, men and women, y…
Of Sh*tholes and Section 8: A Response to Rod Dreher
In the current state of public discourse offensive statements have become commonplace. I tend to ignore most of those comments, but occasionally some of them deserve a response. After reading Rod Dreh…
Why So Many White Churches Resisted Martin Luther King Jr.’s call
King’s emphasis on the social dimensions of Christianity, especially regarding race relations, angered many white evangelicals in his day.…
My 10 Favorite History Books of 2017
After reading dozens of U.S. history books for my PhD coursework this year, I find myself circling back to a few works time and again. So I decided to put them in a of list my ten favorite history boo…
White Evangelicals Must Ask, “Why Does Our Theology Lead to Republicanism?”
Much virtual ink has been spilled discussing the merits of the term “evangelical.” But the energetic attempts to declare #notallevangelicals fall short if they fail to ask, “Why does our theology lead…
In Mississippi’s Museum Openings, a Victory for ‘Local People’
NOTE: This article originally appeared in “Opinion” section of the New York Times. JACKSON, Miss. — When President Trump decided at the last minute to attend the grand opening of the Museu…
VIDEO: Am I an Evangelical?- Perspectives from Women and Black Christians
Recent polls indicating strong white evangelical support for morally-questionable political candidates coupled with ongoing racial tensions within evangelical churches and institutions has compelled m…
Pass The Mic- Interview with Bryan Stevenson
Listen Now Bryan Stevenson is an award-winning lawyer, speaker, as well as the founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, an organization based in Montgomery, Alabama, that is com…
Tolerance for Racism Paved the Way for the Moral Bankruptcy of This Moment
American citizens should not be surprised at the paucity of character we are currently seeing in our politicians.…
Launching “The Witness”: Ask Me Anything with Tyler, Beau and Jemar
Tyler Burns, Beau York, and Jemar Tisby sit down on the launch day for The Witness: A Black Christian Collective. They talk about the background of the name as well as the many announcements coming ou…
I’m a black man who moved to the Deep South. Here’s what it’s teaching me about race.
Note: This article originally appeared on Vox.com I almost swerved off the road the first time I saw cotton in full bloom. I had seen the dull green cotton plants crawling toward the sky through the s…
The Journey from RAAN to “The Witness: A Black Christian Collective”
The Witness is not the voice of black Christians; it is the microphone that amplifies those who have often gone unheard.…
Martin Luther King’s Eulogy of the Four Girls Killed in a Birmingham Church Bombing
September 16, 1963 brought news of one of the most horrific acts of hate and violence ever perpetrated during the Civil Rights movement. Four young black girls–Addie Mae Collins, Carol Denise Mc…
The Misunderstood Dream: A Reflection On the Anniversary of King’s “I Have A Dream” Speech
August 28 marks the anniversary of one of the most iconic speeches in American history and a high point of the twentieth century Civil Rights Movement. On this day, Martin Luther King, Jr., a preacher…
The Downside of Integration for Black Christians
In the days of Jim Crow law and custom mandated racial segregation, physical signs of separation included placards over drinking fountains, separate entrances at movie theaters, and train cars dedicat…
10 Everyday Ways Charlottesville and White Supremacy Are Allowed to Still Happen
On Friday, white supremacists gathered in Charlottesville in a rally full of racist iconography. They marched at night, carried torches, and chanted “We will not be replaced!” But deplorable incidents…
“All You Talk about Is Race”: Five Responses to a Frustrating Comment
As someone who does race work, every so often someone makes the comment, “All you talk about is race.” I usually keep it moving and avoid making any response, but the statement frustrates me–mos…
How Should You Celebrate the Fourth of July? Make Juneteenth a National Holiday.
For most minorities, especially African Americans, “Independence” Day always comes with quotation marks around it. That’s because the document that declared “all men are create…
Emmett Till and erasing the reality of racism
Note: This article originally appeared in the Jackson Clarion-Ledger. An Emmett Till marker has been vandalized yet again, and the form of vandalism symbolizes a larger story. While defacing a marker …