Privilege, Monuments, and Healing
Twenty-one years ago, I moved to Monument Avenue, in Richmond, Virginia. The monuments that line the center of this thoroughfare that connects downtown Richmond to the suburbs are huge. Taller…
Using My Head, My Heart, and My Hands to Consider Defunding the Police
Defunding the police? Support and thank the police? Criticize the police? Commend the police? There’s a long list of names of Black men and women who have been shot to…
Season 3 Trailer: White Picket Fences
Are you looking for a safe place to talk about race, class, and social divisions? Do you want to learn more about these topics? Do you want a way to…
Some Stories of Hope in a Week of Hardship
Hope and racism. Ta-Nehisi Coates is feeling hopeful. I didn’t think I would ever type those words. Coates is famous for his 2015 memoir, Between the World and Me, in…
Injustice: Reflect, Relate, Respond
My various news feeds are swirling with people responding to injustice. Peaceful protests all across the nation. Violence and looting. Police brutality. Police support. Theological commentaries. Mental health resources. Point-counterpoint…
Five First Steps toward Participating in Racial Healing
How can white people respond to racial tensions and violence in a meaningful way? How can white people contribute to a collective work of racial healing without being overwhelmed or…
George Floyd and Breonna Taylor: Why These Particular Deaths Deserve Our Attention
I woke up to reports of violence in multiple cities around the country. In the wake of George Floyd’s death earlier this week and the ongoing concerns over Breonna Taylor’s…
Choosing to Be Present in Suffering
For people like me—for people who are white and live in affluence and stability—stories like that of George Floyd are easy to ignore. In the past, I have told myself…
The Ordinary Goodness of a Life with Down Syndrome, Even Now
Our daughter Penny is 14. She loves Taylor Swift and Fuller House and the Yankees. She betrays many signs of becoming a typical teenager: she groans when I wake her…
AJB Recommends: Resources for Hope
I talked about hope on my podcast last week (and tomorrow’s episode will be a bonus episode, also about hope), so I wanted to offer a few other recent podcasts…
