STORY BY KYLIE JO SMITH
Contributor
Many of my white evangelical friends have expressed their disdain for the #BlackLivesMatter movement. I’ve mostly remained silent, save for the occasional pointing out that the media is hardly the encyclopedia for all things race-related in this country.
But now, I’d like to share my own voice on the matter itself.
We can try to blame the hype on our black president. We can try to blame it on the media. We can try to blame it on slavery. We can even try to blame it on some vague sense of universal ignorance.
But ultimately, racism is not the fault of any of those things. Racism is a relational issue. It is person to person. And it is a tool of the only enemy we have ever really had: satan. I know, as many of my brothers and sisters do as well, that the only hope we have of overcoming the sin and curse of racism, is Jesus Christ – not because he is colorblind, as some might suggest – but because he draws us out of the blind division we create, into appreciating the diversity he has brought forth from the beginning of time in sovereignty and grace.
That’s why I believe in saying things like, “black lives matter.”
It’s not because other lives don’t matter.
It’s not because black lives matter more, or because only black lives matter.[blockquote align=”right” author=””]I know, as many of my brothers and sisters do as well, that the only hope we have of overcoming the sin and curse of racism, is Jesus Christ – not because he is colorblind, as some might suggest – but because he draws us out of the blind division we create, into appreciating the diversity he has brought forth from the beginning of time in sovereignty and grace.[/blockquote]
I say “black lives matter,” because I believe (and the Scripture I read tells me that) my life matters, that my life has purpose and value beyond what others ascribe to it.
It’s more than just me, though:
My husband’s life matters.
My son’s life matters.
My unborn daughter’s life matters.
My family’s lives matter.
See, when I say, “black lives matter,” I’m not insulting the government, or making a statement of terrorism.
I’m standing alongside the men and women who understand that being black has always been something of a curse, for which there is only One True remedy: Jesus.
When I say “black lives matter,” I mean that black lives are in a state of crisis. Not just from police violence, but poverty, gangs, the abortion industry, drugs, crime, suicide, health care disparities, maternal and infant mortality rates, and unfair wealth distribution.
Because “black lives matter” isn’t just about law enforcement relations.
It isn’t about protests and marches and hashtags.
[blockquote align=”none” author=””]“Black lives matter” has to do with fanning the flame that people like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Nina Simone, Medgar Evers, Rosa Parks, James Meredith and countless others lit when they decided to stand for the dignity of people of color.[/blockquote]
Sometimes, though, I say it because I know deep down, that in the hearts of many, black lives don’t matter.
Not just black lives, but the lives of anyone who dares to challenge or differ in experience, anyone whose existence makes us uncomfortable…threatens us.
Lives of unborn children don’t matter, lives of refugees don’t matter, lives of immigrants don’t matter, lives of the homeless don’t matter, Christians being executed don’t matter, and though at times we are moved to momentary compassion, not even the lives of endangered species matter.
So, sometimes, when I say, “black lives matter,” I wonder if that’s even true.
Especially when I see people who look like me being murdered with little to no justice. Especially when I see how so many black people are misled and making mistakes that scar the rest of us. Especially when some of my brothers and sisters tell me that the issue isn’t as bad as it seems.
When I say, “Black lives matter,” I know that it doesn’t change anything.
I know that the real change happens when I act like my life matters. And I seek to actually make a difference in the world around me because of that.
It’s not a social “gospel,” it’s a small thread in the simple Gospel – the one that says I have value because of Whose I am, not who people say I am or think I am when they look at me.
It’s about the imago Dei, it’s about Psalm 139, Jeremiah 1:5, and the desire God has to draw people from every tribe, nation, and tongue unto Him. And it’s about how black people are included in that.
So, when I say, “black lives matter,” know that you don’t have to paint me into the corner with shades of fear and ignorance that say I’m endorsing an anti-Christian terrorist organization that needs to be dismantled before it takes over the world. If we want to start pointing fingers in accusation about that, perhaps we should start with some of our world’s governing powers.
When I say, “Black lives matter,” I’m not even speaking about an organization or a website. I’m speaking about people. People who look like me. Human beings created with extreme care and beauty.
When you hear me say, “black lives matter,” you also don’t have to give in to the false notion that everyone who says “Black lives matter” is just part of a group of whiny, entitled people who need to get a life.
You can say it with me, or you can disagree, or you can ask me about it. But please don’t roll your eyes or insist on retaliating with the phrase, “all lives matter.”
That tells me that you don’t really understand what I mean when I say, “Black lives matter.” And worse yet, that you don’t care.
See, “black lives matter” it isn’t about the temporal matters that we assign to the human condition.[blockquote align=”right” author=””]You can say it with me, or you can disagree, or you can ask me about it. But please don’t roll your eyes or insist on retaliating with the phrase, “all lives matter.”[/blockquote]
It’s about the inherent value of black people, who have been on the receiving end of systemic inequality for hundreds of years. It’s about the reality that, whether or not you see it, black lives are fearful and in danger and in need of hope and compassion.
So, when I say, “black lives matter,” maybe you can also hear, “black people have eternal value,” or “black people were created by God, too,” or “black people don’t deserve to get executed.”
Because, when I hear arguments against that phrase, what I hear is, “not really,” “so, what?”, and “yes, they do.”
Which really hurts the witness of would-be effective ministers for the Gospel. It also ends the conversation before it even begins.
“Black lives matter” isn’t just three words, though.
It isn’t a passing fad, and it isn’t a group of “ghetto thugs” looting and vandalizing with no vision or purpose.
It’s a very simple reminder to me that today, at the very least, I have the freedom to say my life matters, and to hope that any law enforcement or person with the ability to harm me will believe it enough to spare my life. My husband’s life. The lives of my children.
That’s why I say, I share, I write, and I believe that black lives do matter.
I may not wear the T-shirts, or march in the protests, agree with all the methodology, or share the memes and links, but I stand by the Civil Rights movement that says “Black Lives Matter,” because it has done far more for me than any amount of white guilt or patronizing remarks about how everything that happens to black people is really our own fault.
“Black lives matter” serves a purpose beyond being combated with the mantra that we just need to “love everybody.”
Because “black lives matter” doesn’t negate that simple truth. In fact, it thrives on it. That’s why those of us who really believe “black lives matter” won’t resort to senseless violence to prove a point or gain a fleeting sense of revenge.[blockquote align=”right” author=””]I may not wear the T-shirts, or march in the protests, agree with all the methodology, or share the memes and links, but I stand by the Civil Rights movement that says “Black Lives Matter,”…[/blockquote]
But, ultimately, we also know that solving the problem that, in America, black lives don’t seem to matter isn’t done by arbitrary shouts of universal love.
It’s done by intentional action and humble confession.
Which is worth saying twice.
It’s done by intentional action and humble confession.
“Black lives matter” is not a religious statement, because nobody needs to return to that kind of bondage, especially not black people.
“Black lives matter” is not a political statement, because let’s face it: any politician who can get more votes will use it to wield their selfish agenda.
“Black lives matter” IS a deep conviction about relationship, the place where we are able to make the biggest difference in the issue of racism. In particular, relationship with Christ, through Him, with the body of believers.
“Black lives matter” challenges us in the Church to recognize that our witness to the world thrives on our ability to meet the world in its pain. Kind of like the ministry of Jesus.
So, when you hear me say, “Black lives matter,” I hope you can hear it from me, and not just about me.
I hope you can hear a biracial woman, black pastor’s wife, minority mother…saying something that she needs to be true, rather than just hearing something that you wish didn’t have to be said.
I hope you can still love me, white friends and family – even though you hate hearing it – because I really do believe that black lives matter. And by the grace and mercy of God, I hope that you do, too.
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