February 19, 2017
Thank you all so much for inviting me to speak. I know I am not a familiar face around here, but I consider myself an intentional advocate for social justice. It requires more work for the justice to be intersectional and for all people. I am not religious, but I do agree with the spiritual practices of service to mankind. I can only speak of my experiences and hope that they will help and inspire someone else to speak their story.
Going through this Discipleship Year while being in one of the most forward-thinking places in the United States has opened up my eyes a lot. I would like to start off with a quick story that will lead today's teaching titled “Who Am I Leaving Behind?”
On January 21, 2017, I saw women flood the streets of Washington DC and other cities across the country to participate in the Women’s March. As an unapologetic queer, black woman with mental disabilities, I had so much to march for. I was excited to see the intersectional framework be lived out in practice, but going to school in the South, and seeing the sea of white women flood in to DC just for the march, I knew I would not be welcomed there. As a favor to my mental health I stayed home. I saw stories of my sisters crying due to micro-aggressions and overt racism from white women protecting their cliques. I saw pictures of white people taking pictures and enjoying the moment while women of color, especially queer women, saw another protest where they must yell to be heard. However, this time there were kind police officers and celebrity media attention. In the words of one of my close friends, “This is one of the most massive marches of whiteness I’ve ever seen. The privilege of being able to talk your truth without fear is often taken for granted. Meanwhile we are speaking our truths and being attacked by the very same people who told us to tell them what’s wrong.” I tried to refrain from my own commentary until I got to see the aftermath. Were these women ready to do the work? Unfortunately, they were not.
A month later and it is Black History Month and I have just launched a mentorship program I created for Jubilee Housing. You would think people would be eager to help disadvantaged black/brown children succeed in an era where the Trump administration is trying to make it even more impossible, but that is not the case. People have gone back to their everyday lives, asking “What do we do?” and “How can I help?” when this city is literally swarming with those opportunities and people in need. I have seen the women at the march go back to their social circles, literally stunting their opportunity for personal and spiritual growth.
How can you advocate for equality and justice if you are not being intentional in your actions? In James 2:1-4 we see an instance of favoritism being shown to the man in a suit while it was so easy to put the homeless man in the back. It is a framework for how our society works. We feel safer in a neighborhood where there are no boarded-up houses; we feel a sense of calm when women are nearby because we believe women are safe; the list goes on and on. However, do we really take the time to notice who we avoid and leave behind?
I am from Chicago and people like to look past the lack of jobs, bus stops, housing, and resources when it comes to the topic of gun violence and go straight to the problems of the people. If you listen to the people who are from the neighborhoods, they do take care of each other and many protest the violence. Why is the narrative that no one wants to take care of their own communities? Why does the media continue to place people who know nothing about Chicago on CNN to give a view on what should be done? That is erasing the people who need justice behind in the pursuit of their own justice.
As members of the body of Christ, we often stick to our own section of the body. If I am a blood cell or an ear, it can get easy to stay in my own body function. But if there is an infection in another part of my body, I would need to be in communication with the parts who will help me fight this infection. I would also need to understand what part of this body is suffering. You could be the blessing someone needs, or more importantly, they can be a blessing to you (healing that infection).
I encourage you all to expand your mind by welcoming in people from different social circles. Want to be a true intersectional feminist? Talk to intersectional women who have no choice but to fight for that struggle every day. Don’t really understand? Ask tough questions. Don’t be afraid to be wrong! Get to know someone who is completely different from you because it may either change or affirm the belief system you already have. In other words, get to know the body of Christ. We were never meant to be the same; we don’t talk the same; we pray differently and care about different things. But we were always meant to be equal. The body of Christ will not function without either of us because we each play an important role, different, but still important. We cannot make someone act like we “think” God intended for them to. We cannot cast a person off just because they do not fit into our societal norms. We have to continue expanding our minds, diversifying our friend-groups, and doing more every day actions that lead into a more inclusive form of justice. This is the only way we can insure that no part of this one body gets left behind.
Thank you.