By Jessie Wardarski and Elana Schor
The Associated Press
The Associated Press recently spoke with Christian leaders about their, and their constituencies’ participation in the national conversation on racial injustice following the killing of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer.
“This is a time when our country needs to come together. Nobody disputes that what happened to Mr. Floyd was a travesty. Nobody disagrees that the men who were responsible for that should be held accountable,” said Franklin Graham, president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse. “I think the most important thing is prayer.”
Kevin McCall, founder of Crisis Action Center in New York City, emphasized the value of non-violent protests while denouncing looting as an affront antithetical to the cause.
Brian Fullman, lead organizer with ISAIAH, a faith-based group focused on racial equality in Minnesota, said there is too much focus today on division where there needs to be focus on unity.
LaTrelle Easterling, leader of the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church, argued that all Americans must “commit to being anti-racist.”
“To simply say ‘I’m not racist’ is to be passive, and if you are passive in this moment, you continue to be complicit in racism,” said Easterling.
“I’m going to continue to organize clergy to show up to these protests and to be in solidarity and lament, to work for change,” Laura Young, a Methodist minister in Ohio.
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