Communal Lament & Response

Union reflections & prayer wall

We grieve the legacy that racism and white supremacy has inflicted on our country, and the insidious ways that it takes Brown and Black lives. Here, we remember our individual and corporate histories and confess before the Creator and Redeemer of all people our complicity in the systemic violence that has plagued the United States from its origins and that the white Church has stayed silent too long. We pray for healing and wisdom that we may live into God’s dream for the reconciling of all creation. We welcome your reflections, prayers, and laments.

Additionally, check our Truth & Justice page for resources, actions, and reflections on racial justice from our community.

Below are statements from the Presbyterian Church (USA) & our local Seattle Presbytery:

Union Church belongs to the PCUSA church, is locally a part of the Seattle Presbytery and actively involved in their Race & Equity Task Force.

Resources

Interrogate Whiteness:

• Anti-racism resources for white people - a thorough list of books, podcasts, movies, resources for parents, and organizations to follow. A great place to start on this journey! Thank you to Lydia Heberling for sharing this list, compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein.

• Overt & Covert White Supremacy diagram - this diagram is a useful tool to develop eyes to see where white supremacy pops up in your life. Evaluate the paragraph I wrote above about my upbringing and see in what ways white supremacy is evident there. This diagram was located on The Conscious Kid (@theconsciouskid)

• Join Kitchen Table Conversations, Tuesdays @7:30PM via Zoom and join the conversation that centers justice.

• In a small group or on your own, go through The Repentance Project's "An American Lament" which is a 7-week Lenten devotional, a journey through America's history of slavery, segregation, and racism.

Advocate:

• Call your local police department and ask what they are doing to address racial/hate crimes, and what their policies are around detaining persons of color. How will they ensure that another person of color will not die in police custody?

• Email Governor Inslee to urge him to follow the instructions of doctors, public health officials and other experts related to COVID, and to push for the protection of essential workers and to minimize the disproportionate and devastating impact on the poor and low-income people in our state.

Act:

• Write your own lament and repentance of complicity in oppressive racist systems to be included on this page. Email Adrienne for details.

• Read the letter from CHOOSE 180 Director, Sean Goode, and find ways to continue to support the work of restorative justice that is CHOOSE 180's core mission.