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Statement on Systemic Racism

June 2, 2020 by North Carolina Council of Churches

A resolution adopted by the Governing Board of the North Carolina Council of Churches, June 2, 2020.

Whereas the North Carolina Council of Churches was founded in 1935, primarily for the purpose of addressing racial inequity and racial injustice, and 

Whereas our white founders soon recognized that racial equity and racial justice should not be discussed without including racially/ethnically diverse voices and so included black faith leaders from North Carolina as members of the Council by 1943, and 

Whereas we have striven together in these eight decades to support the Civil Rights Act, support the Voting Rights Act, lament the deaths of untold black neighbors whose names are written on the heart of God and on the hearts of those who loved them, call for justice when the systems of justice failed us, and hold firm to the belief that our diversity makes us stronger, and

Whereas the murder of George Floyd by a white police officer while three other officers watched has exacerbated an already unacceptable devaluing of black and brown lives, and

Whereas racism has been compared to a complex underground rhizome that spreads unseen before erupting into specific social structures (e.g., law enforcement), concentrating attention on this part of the structure while the main tumor continues to strengthen racism in the remainder of the system, and 

Whereas we recognize and confess that the racist systems in which we live primarily benefit white people, we therefore place a higher expectation on white people to do the necessary work of dismantling these systems;

The Governing Board of the North Carolina Council of Churches hereby resolves to press ahead with urgency to understand the dynamics of racism in all of its manifestations and to be transformative in society by working across systems and structures where interpersonal, systemic and institutional racism operate, and to work to dismantle the racist systems that perpetuate and allow violence against black and brown bodies. 

We will immediately and actively:

  1. Bear witness to the Gospel that proclaims each of us are beloved of God; 
  2. Educate people, particularly white people, about the underlying structures of systemic racism, especially educational, health care, judicial, economic, religious, and governmental systems;
  3. Teach the truth that white privilege benefits white people in ways that must be acknowledged by them; 
  4. Empower white people to move beyond passive support to become active allies of black and brown people;
  5. Denounce the increased militarization of our local police forces and call for accountability such as: ban chokeholds and strangle holds, implement use-of-force continuums, institute de-escalation training, establish diversity and inclusion training, and require comprehensive community reporting;
  6. Confess that white supremacy infects the very systems that are meant to ensure “liberty and justice for all”; 
  7. Disrupt the current systems by refusing to accept indifference (“It’s not my problem”), claims of innocence (“I’m not a racist”), disavowal of responsibility (“I don’t see color”), minimizing the issue (“All lives matter”), or willful helplessness (“There’s nothing I can do”); and
  8. Create systems that tangibly make reparations for the damage of over 400 years of slavery and oppression by standing in solidarity with and amplifying the voices of black and brown people who have experienced suffering, pain and violence as a result of the current systems. 

Filed Under: Blog, Homepage Featured, Issue Statements Tagged With: Race/Ethnicity

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Brenda Dalton James says

    June 23, 2020 at 4:36 pm

    Thank you for the action you have taken on this subject. Much needed at this time.

    Reply
  2. Debbie wright says

    June 18, 2020 at 8:24 am

    I am currently dealing with systemic racism, a school board in the state of Maryland PGCPS and parent third party insurance company corvel Corporation has been harassing me intrusion of my right to privacy stalking and they are paying people to do it as God is my witness they have been doing it for nine years and people are being paid under the table I have pictures and videos. If I was a white woman they would not have been doing this so please tell me why are they still doing it who authorized it and what give them the right the misuse Federal funding that’s for the school and children to throw away to the public. This is everyday total strangers following me know what my car look like know what I look like know where I live and this is all because of no reason my injuries am I five surgeries was years ago this case was closed in 2015 why is it still going on. Nobody’s paying attention to the millions and millions of dollars that they’ll throw it away.

    Reply
  3. Roy says

    June 11, 2020 at 5:37 am

    Are we not all brothers and sisters,Hope we can act like we are.We share this earth together.

    Reply
  4. Linda Boston says

    June 6, 2020 at 11:16 am

    Please don’t forget or are take lightly the fact that transformation also still needs to be done with in the realm of organized religion; within religious organizations, affliations, and denominations. Unconsciously and I dare say conscioulsly the master race concept imbedded in Western cultural practices, theological and philosophical dogma and in social norms, practices, and behavior has yet to be addressed in a way that eradicate this deadly virus.

    Reply
  5. Dan W. Figgins says

    June 2, 2020 at 8:20 pm

    Paragraph 5 might well have added to e.g. law enforcement AND THE LOCATION OF ENVIRONMENTALLY HAZARDOUS ACTIVITIES IN POOR AND BLACK NEIGHBORHOODS.

    Reply
  6. Dr. Beverly R. Wallace says

    June 2, 2020 at 5:25 pm

    This is powerful. Thank you for making this statement with tangible action points.

    Reply
  7. Jeff Bradsher says

    June 2, 2020 at 4:37 pm

    Thank you for helping us breathe!

    Reply
  8. Johnavae Campbell says

    June 2, 2020 at 4:36 pm

    Thank you for this statement! It is with a full heart that I am thankful to God and our beloved Christ that we have sisters and brothers in Christ that stand in love and solidarity with us, Black and Brown people, in our struggle and burden to fight for justice.

    Reply

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