The struggle for Black lives must go on through active resistance and collective action.
The tragic murder of George Floyd has awakened the conscience of the US and the international community. The video has made truth confront power with full force in the US and other parts of the world. Without the video, the death of Mr. Floyd may have gone without a response, like so many black men and women before him. The video challenges people to demand justice for his death and the death of many others. We, the people at Newark Good Shepherd Church of the Nazarene, join our voices to call for justice and fairness. This is an important call that we must continue to make. Racism, greed, taking advantage of the poor and the weak, and disrespect for human life are systemic social and institutional evils that have been ingrained in people’s minds for many generations throughout history. We call them personal and social sins. The systemic evils must be confronted with the word of God and our active engagement and confrontation everywhere. These systemic evils will not be dismantled when we close our hearts, harden our social conscience, strengthen our tribal instincts, and become passive in our behaviors and actions. If we do not wake up and engage actively in our community as God wants and asks us to do, our singing and praises “will turn into weeping” ( Amos 8:10). Now, it is George Floyd’s brutal murder- unfortunately, this fight may have been for our lives, our children’s lives, or our grandchildren’s lives. Yes, truth must continue to confront the power of systemic evil that surrounds us.
If you read or pay attention to the news, you will notice that many political and economic leaders in European, Asian, Central and South American, Caribbean, Middle Eastern, and African countries don’t make public statements about Mr. Floyd’s brutal murder. This is because the plights of black people and other minorities are the same or worse in their own countries. Racism, tribalism, and regionalism are different types of cancers that destroy our societies and hearts. If we don’t confront them, they will spread and handicap us socially, intellectually, economically, and spiritually. Yes, it has been a long and tiring fight, but do not be discouraged. Our ancestors have fought to bring us to where we are. The Bible requires us to fight injustice in every form and level. We might be tired and drained, but we need to continue the fight. Remember that the truth is never wrong. Truth must continue to confront the power of obscurity every day and everywhere through our individual and collective attitudes, behavior, and actions.
“Faith without action is dead” ( James 1:17). The fight goes on. Lives of the poor and the oppressed matter. Black lives matter.
Peace and blessings to you and your families,
Rev. Dr. Dumerzier Charles