Established in 2017, Building the Beloved Community (BBC) is a ministry focused on issues of racial and economic justice and reconciliation in our church and community. On the heels of the murder of George Floyd in 202, we began a concerted effort to strengthen our efforts at truth-telling, education, and proactive change. One of the ways we are doing this is through Sacred Ground (see below), story-telling, and working with our diocese on efforts at racial justice.
Sacred Ground
As part of the Episcopal Church’s long-term commitment to racial healing, reconciliation, and justice in our personal lives, our ministries, and our society, St. Paul’s is hosting Sacred Ground, a 10-part series built around a powerful online curriculum of documentary films and readings that focus on Indigenous, Black, Latino, and Asian/Pacific American histories as they intersect with European American histories. The first group took place in winter/spring 2021. The second group is taking place fall/winter 2021-2022. Contact us for more information.
My Name is Pauli Murray
Becoming Beloved Community, St. Paul’s ministry of racial reconciliation and transformation, invites you to a screening of My Name is Pauli Murray, an award-winning documentary on the life of Episcopal priest and legal activist, Pauli Murray, on Saturday, November 13 at 6:00 p.m. Discussion to follow. Open to all in the community. Click here to sign up.
Additional Resources
WATCH
Racism is Real, A split-screen video depicting the differential in the white and black lived experience. (3 minutes)
Confronting ‘intergroup anxiety’: Can you try too hard to be fair? Explores why we may get tongue tied and blunder when we encounter people from groups unfamiliar to us. (5 minutes)
The Disturbing History of the Suburbs, An “Adam Ruins Everything” how redlining came to be. (6 minutes)
CBS News Analysis: 50 states, 50 different ways of teaching America’s past, Ibram X. Kendi reviews current history curriculum production and use across the U.S. (5 minutes)
What Kind of Asian Are You? Humorous two minute YouTube video that illustrates the utter silliness of the way many white Americans interact with Asian Americans. (2 minutes)
Birth of a White Nation, Keynote speech by legal scholar Jacqueline Battalora, offers a blow-by-blow description of the moment the idea of, and word for, “white” people entered U.S. legal code. (36 minutes)
13th, Netflix documentary by Ava DuVernay, about the connection between US Slavery and the present day mass incarceration system. (1 hour, 40 minutes)
This is Us, Dr. Eddie Glaude (Princeton University) explains why blaming current racial tensions on Donald Trump misses the point. (3 minutes)
How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them, TED Talk by Vernā Myers, encourages work vigorously to counter balance bias by connecting with and learning about and from the groups we fear. (19 minutes)
How to deconstruct racism, one headline at a time, TED Talk by Baratunde Thurston that explores patterns revealing our racist framing, language, and behaviors. (10 minutes)
Indigenous People React to Indigenous Representation in Film And TV, Conversation with a diverse range of Indigenous people by FBE about media depictions of Indigenous people, Columbus day, and Indigenous identity. (15 minutes)
What Being Hispanic and Latinx Means in the United States, Fernanda Ponce shares what she’s learning about the misunderstanding and related mistreatment of the incredibly diverse ethnic category people in U.S. call Hispanic. (12 minutes)
READ
Racial Justice Audit The Episcopal Church’s audit on experiences of people of color in the church
Episcopal Church Racial Reconciliation Resources by The Episcopal Church
10 Ways Well-Meaning White Teachers Bring Racism Into Our Schools, by Jamie Utt
21 Racial Microaggressions You Hear on a Daily Basis,by Heben Nigatu
Climbing the White Escalator, by Betsy Leondar-Wright
Explaining White Privilege To A Broke White Person, by Gina Crosley-Corcoran
Guide to Allyship, by Amélie Lamont
It’s Not Just the South: Here’s How Everyone Can Resist White Supremacy, by Sarah van Gelder
Making America White Again, by Toni Morrison
Understanding the Racial Wealth Gap, by Amy Traub, Laura Sullivan, Tatjana Mescheded, & Tom Shapiro
What White Children Need to Know About Race, by Ali Michael and Elenora Bartoli
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack, by Peggy McIntosh
Caught Up In God, by Willie James Jennings
LISTEN
Code Switch, hosted by journalists Gene Demby and Shereen Marisol Meraji
Scene on Radio – Seeing White Series, host John Biewen and collaborator Chenjerai Kumanyika
TED Radio Hour – Mary Bassett: How Does Racism Affect Your Health? host Guy Raz speaks with Dr. Mary T. Bassett, Director of the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University
Here & Now – Without Slavery, Would The U.S. Be The Leading Economic Power? host Jeremy Hobson and author Edward Baptist
NPR Morning Edition – You Cannot Divorce Race From Immigration journalist Rachel Martin talks to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas
Pod Save the People, Activism. Social Justice. Culture. Politics. On Pod Save the People, organizer and activist DeRay Mckesson
