Anti-racism action steps and resources

Photo by Tandem X Visuals on Unsplash

Appendix to Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ July 1, 2020 statement “Our commitment to anti-racism and the ‘Beloved Community'” 

Action steps toward creating a culture of anti-racism

Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ Anti-Racism Task Force recommitted in January 2020 to analyze how we need to change, examining everything from training, hiring, staff and board composition, recruitment, admissions, orientation, in-country support, and leadership. That commitment has only deepened as we have been reminded of the moral imperative to address the sin of racism within our institutions and ourselves. As we continue this journey to reflect, dismantle and rebuild, Maryknoll Lay Missioners commits time, talent and financial resources to create a culture of anti-racism by focusing on the following areas:

• Internal survey and reflection, identifying pertinent areas of growth
• Integration of a pastoral theological reflection process on racism in preparation for our 2021 Mission Assembly, which will help shape the organization for the future.
• Resources, training, and education to help us unlearn and learn from the voices most affected by racism within and beyond our organization as well as thought leaders, ministry leaders and activists.
• Increased partnership, community, and civic engagement with organizations and networks of various cultural families, particularly in the Catholic Church
• Recruitment of diverse communities for lay missioner and staff positions
• Structure and Accountability

These are initial ideas and steps that we trust— with the guidance of the Holy Spirit — may open ourselves to a communal journey that dismantles all systems of oppression and hate and works for justice throughout our world.

Selected resources on racism for further research, education, and collaboration

This is by no means an exhaustive list for reading about history and/or race in the United States. An inclusive list would be very long and impossible to provide here. We hope this provides a starting point for continued reflection, education and collaboration.

Organizations and Networks

• Crossroads
• Intercommunity Peace and Justice Center
• Mexican American Catholic College
• National Museum of African American History & Culture
• National Black Congress
• Institute for Black Catholic Studies, Xavier University of Louisiana
• National Museum of the American Indian
• Pax Christi USA
• Sojourners
• The Catholic Mobilizing Network
• The King Center
• The National Seed Project
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

Prayer and spirituality

• Prayers for Racial Justice and Reconciliation from jesuitresource.org
• Faith and Racial Equity: Exploring Power and Privilege, from JustFaith Ministries
• Resources on Racism: Stats, prayers, quotes, church documents, films, publications and websites from Social Justice Resource Center
• We’ve No Salt Left (A poem for George Floyd, for Ahmaud Arbery and for all by Maryknoll lay missioner, Abby Belt)

Church Documents

• Contribution to World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, Pontifical Council For Justice And Peace, September 2001
• Night Will Be No More, Pastoral Letter by Bishop Mark J. Seitz, Diocese of El Paso, 2019
• Open Wide Our Hearts: The Enduring Call to Love – A Pastoral Letter Against Racism, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), 2018
• USCCB page, Combatting Racism – Statements and Letters

Articles

• “‘The ink has run dry on writing statements.’ Black Catholics call for action in wake of George Floyd’s killing” (Michael O’Loughlin, America Magazine)
• “Police brutality & protest: Floyd’s murder must bring change” (Editors, Commonweal)
• “The assumptions of white privilege and what we can do about it.” (Bryan N. Massingale, National Catholic Reporter)
• “The duty of white Christians to dismantle the idolatry of racism.” (Kathy Lilla Cox, National Catholic Reporter)

Books to read:

• America’s Original Sin by Jim Wallis
• The Beloved by Toni Morrison
• Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
• Black Feminist Thought by Patricia Hill Collins
• Black Theology and Black Power (50th Anniversary Edition) by James H. Cone 
• The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
• Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Dr. Brittney Cooper
• The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
• Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America by Juan Gonzalez
• Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon
• The History of Black Catholics in the United States by Cyprian Davis
• How To Be An Antiracist by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi
• I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
• Interrupting White Privilege: Catholic Theologians Break the Silence, edited by Laurie M. Cassidy and Alexander Mikulich 
• Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
• Martin & Malcolm & America by James H. Cone
• Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
• The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
• No Crystal Stair: Womanist Spirituality by Diana Hayes
• On the Move: A History of the Hispanic Church in the United States by Moises Sandoval
• Racial Justice and the Catholic Church by Bryan N. Massingale
• Redefining Realness by Janet Mock
• Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde
• So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
• The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
• Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
• When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America by Ira Katznelson
• White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo, PhD

Films and TV series to watch:

• 13th (Ava DuVernay)
• Dear White People (Justin Simien)
• Fruitvale Station (Ryan Coogler)
• Harriet (Kasi Lemmons)
• The Hate U Give (George Tillman Jr.)
• I Am Not Your Negro (James Baldwin doc)
• If Beale Street Could Talk (Barry Jenkins)
• Just Mercy (Destin Daniel Cretton)
• Malcolm X (Spike Lee)
• See You Yesterday (Stefon Bristol)
• Selma (Ava DuVernay)
• When They See Us (Ava DuVernay)

Visual Media

• Brave New Films
  • Racial Justice Series
  • Racism is Real
• Mercy Volunteer Corps Listen & Learn Initiative
• National Federation for Youth Ministry: How to Talk About Racism
• PBS – Race: The Power of an Illusion
  • Episode 1 – The Difference Between Us
  • Episode 2 excerpt – The Story We Tell
  • Episode 3 excerpt – The House We Live In
• The Danger of a Single Story (A TED Talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
• Under Our Skin (A project of the Seattle Times)

Podcasts to subscribe to:

• 1619 (New York Times)
• About Race
• Code Switch (NPR)
• Intersectionality Matters! hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw
• Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast
• Pod For The Cause (from The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights)