Tag Archives: reparations

Our Diocese’s Report on Slavery and Its Legacy

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May 14, 2024

The Diocese of Massachusetts Toolkit for Reparations has a new resource. As of
March 2024, their list of sources includes “And You Will Know the Truth, and the Truth Will Make You Free: A Historical Framework (1620-1840) for Understanding How the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts Benefits Todayfrom Chattel Slavery and Its Legacy.”

This report, written by Alden Fossett, a postulant for ordination to the priesthood and Master of Divinity student at Berkeley Divinity School at Yale, was released by the Subcommittee on Reparations of DioMass’s Racial Justice Commission.

The focus of the report is on the “12 Church of England parishes founded in Massachusetts before the American Revolution and the sources of wealth that funded their construction, as well as industries that funded the expansion of the Diocese of Massachusetts during the 19th century.” It complements the earlier history, “The Episcopal Church and Slavery: A Historical Narrative,” written by the Subcommittee on Reparations in November 2021. Continue reading →

Bearing Witness

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May 6, 2024

“Bearing Witness: Museums and Places Amplifying Black History”

On May 1, 2024 , the Boston Athenaeum invited all to join in a conversation about museums as “trusted spaces of memory and education.” The panel, moderated by historian Byron Rushing, included Kyera Singleton, Director of the Royall House and Slave Quarters, and Christian Walkes, Director of Education at the Museum of African American History.

Hosted at the African Meeting House (Boston), the discussion focused on “the intersection of collective memory and museums, delving into the profound role and responsibility of being stewards of historic sites…[navigating] the intricate dynamics of preserving and presenting history to diverse audiences.” At a time when museums are rethinking their educational roles, we learned about these two local sites, and how they are focused on the “history and legacy of slavery and racial injustice and how we might imagine a more just world.”

In greeting and thanking Byron after the talks, we brought him an artifact from our Emmanuel history, a copy of the article about our 1995 series, “Power Shifts,” in which he spoke about wielding power for the betterment of all concerned. (Emmanuel News 1995: v. 1, no. 1) We had a moment to remember his ongoing engagement with racial justice over the years and it was wonderful to share some time with him.

–Mary Beth Clack, Mary Blocher, Cindy Coldren, Pat Krol, Liz Levin
–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church May 6, 2024

Boston’s Reparations Efforts

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March 25, 2024

Last week, sixteen clergy and faith leaders gathered in Roxbury to hold a press conference about their open letter to several churches supporting reparations in our city. The event was hosted by a local activist group, the Boston People’s Reparations Commission.

Are you curious about Boston’s reparations efforts? You may have read that the City of Boston appointed two research teams to continue their work (begun in late 2022). One group brings together researchers of the African American Trail Project at Tufts University and historians at the Royall House and Slave Quarters in Medford; they will study the history of enslavement from 1620 to 1940. A second group of scholars from Northeastern University will research the history of inequality within the Boston Public Schools, Boston Police Department, Boston Fire Department, and Boston Housing Authority in the era after 1940.

We found the seven-episode podcast series hosted by the WGBH News Equity and Justice Unit to be an excellent introduction to how reparations were championed, and challenged, in our municipal and state government over the years. Entitled “What is Owed?” the broadcast covers the stories of important advocates of reparations, from freedwoman Belinda Sutton, who successfully petitioned the Massachusetts General Court in 1783, through the work of Senator Bill Owens, the first Black member of the Massachusetts Senate, and ends with the unfolding story of our current times.

–Mary Beth Clack, Cindy Coldren, Mary Blocher, Pat Krol, Liz Levin
–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church March 27, 2024

Black History Month

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March 10, 2024

“African Americans and the Arts” is the theme of Black History Month 2024. Celebrations of Black History Month at the Washington National Cathedral included its Annual HBCU Welcome Sunday and a spoken word, dance, and music event.

In addition, the Cathedral is highlighting its “Now and Forever Windows” (those replacing the 1953 Lee-Jackson windows), which were dedicated and blessed this past fall. The public event was held on September 23, 2023. The windows, designed by artist Kerry James Marshall, depict the struggle for justice as a religious struggle. It was important for the windows to, in Marshall’s words, “capture both darkness and light, both the pain of yesterday and the promise of tomorrow, as well as the quiet and exemplary dignity of the African American struggle for justice and equality and the indelible and progressive impact it has had on American society.”

As noted by Cathedral staff, the windows project prompted a wider community discussion of “What exactly is sacred art?” For a closer look at the effort to broaden the understanding of history at our nation’s cathedral, and for more about the creation and symbolism of the windows, the following resources are online:

  • Now and Forever: A Story of Freedom on the Move (video, 22 minutes)
  • Smart History’s conversation with artist Kerry James Marshall and poet Elizabeth Alexander (video, 9 minutes)

—Mary Beth Clack, Cindy Coldren, Pat Krol, Liz Levin, Mary Blocher

–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church February 21, 28 & March 7, 2024

The Church of England and Reparations

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March 10, 2024

In this second week of Women’s History Month, we celebrate The Rev. Canon Kelly Brown Douglas, author, professor, and dedicated advocate of social justice. The Reverend Douglas, one of the first ten Black women to be ordained a priest in the Episcopal Church, was a speaker at Emmanuel’s 2022 Pauli Murray conference. Douglas is currently Canon Theologian at the National Cathedral and Interim President of the Episcopal Divinity School.

Douglas spent the fall of 2023 as Honorary Professor of Global Theology at Emmanuel Theological College, one of the newest Anglican seminaries in the UK. While there, she traveled, spoke at events, met students and faculty at other institutions, and discussed the Church of England’s reparations efforts. Douglas said it was an opportune time to be engaged in discussions about inclusion and reparative social justice with UK colleagues. As reported here in the Episcopal News Service’s Press Release (February 1, 2024), Douglas expressed her hope for the future: “We strive for justice and the full inclusion of the diversity of God’s creation, and then unity follows.” Continue reading →

Celebrating Absalom Jones

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Black History Month begins with commemorations in the Episcopal Church honoring Absalom Jones, the first black Episcopal priest in the U.S. whose feast day is February 13th . The Episcopal News Service gives a full listing of dioceses across the country that are holding special programs.

Our diocese has rescheduled its commemoration of Absalom Jones from February 11th to April 7th, at which time Bishop Alan Gates will preside at St. Cyprian’s, Roxbury, and the Reverend James Hairston will preach. For more about Absalom Jones (1746-1818), see the history page hosted by the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, Philadelphia.

Or listen to the sermon preached by The Reverend Yejide Peters Pietersen (Yale Divinity School) at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on February 4, 2024. The Reverend Pietersen talks about how “saint becomes symbol” of faithful resistance and insistence in a post-Reconstruction era. She also honors Pauli Murray and Barbara Harris.

—Mary Beth Clack, Cindy Coldren, Pat Krol
–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church February 7 & 14, 2024

Interview with Rev. Jarrett-Schell on Church Reparations

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The text used by our vestry for an introduction to church reparations was written by the Reverend Peter Jarrett-Schell, Rector of Calvary Episcopal Church, Washington, DC. Entitled Reparations: A Plan for Churches, the book draws upon Jarrett-Schell’s experience with draws on his experience as a member of the Reparations Committee in the Diocese of Washington, DC and as Rector of Calvary Episcopal Church, a historically Black church in the diocese.

We discovered an interview with Reverend Jarrett-Schell that was hosted by the Union of Black Episcopalians (UBE) in their series of monthly virtual talks (scroll down to the last talk): We’re Talking Now: Reparations: A Plan for Churches (November 19, 2023). In it, Jarrett-Schell explains his recommendations for church reparations processes. He tells us that while reluctant to write the book on his own, he decided to do so only with the advice and counsel of prominent Black leaders and in dialogue with them. In this talk, he gives two examples of churches who are moving along in very different approaches to repair and reparations. Continue reading →

Martin Luther King and Prophecy

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“As a young man, with most of my life ahead of me, I decided early to give myself to something eternal and absolute. Not to those little gods that are here today and gone tomorrow. But to God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
–Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr., chapter 4

As commemorations for Martin Luther King, Jr. take place in various venues this month, we reflect on his prophetic voice, prompted by Pam’s sermon on the Second Sunday after the Epiphany. Pam spoke about the work of “connecting the dots” in scripture and sacred stories. By listening closely to the messengers of God who link the human and the divine, we deepen our understanding of these narratives–these “pieces of the fabric of community.” Continue reading →

“The Cost of Inheritance”

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“The Cost of Inheritance,” a documentary that explores reparations in America, was aired this week on PBS. It is now available for viewing via PBS’s YouTube channel. Part of the series, America Reframed, the film adopts “a thoughtful approach to History, historical injustices, systemic inequities, and critical dialog on racial conciliation.”

Viewers hear the thoughts and feelings of individuals and members of groups who are seeking to heal racial wounds. The dilemmas of inheritance are explored and reimagined as people develop relationships, share family stories, memories, and documentation, and make amends that are mutually agreed upon. A range of efforts are described. We meet the founders of Reparations4slavery.com and members of Coming to the Table, a network of groups of descendants of enslavers and enslaved who are seeking to repair racial disparities.

There is also coverage of more sweeping efforts including Georgetown University’s reparations work, the National Black Farmers Association/USDA settlement, and the Quarterman and Keller Social Justice Scholarships at Spelman College.

—Mary Beth Clack, Cindy Coldren, Pat Krol
–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church Jan. 11, 2024

Pauli Murray’s Legacy

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Following Emmanuel’s July 2023 dedication of the Pauli Murray statue that graces our pulpit, we have some related news from her niece, Rosita Stevens-Holsey, and officially, from the U.S. Mint. The Reverend Dr, Pauli Murray Quarter was released on January 2, 2024 as one of the new set of American Women Quarters. The design and significance of the coin are described here.

We have also learned that Pauli Murray scholarship is continuing apace. A recent
collection has been published, To Speak a Defiant Word: Sermons and Speeches on Justice and Transformation. Edited by Anthony B. Pinn, this work builds on Pinn’s previous research and includes sermons, lectures, and speeches.

Lastly, of interest to us is the growing list of recipients of the annual Pauli Murray Book Prize for the best book in Black intellectual history. Sponsored by the African American Intellectual History Society, and first awarded in 2018, the list of recipients includes authors writing on Black history, Black internationalism and environmental Justice, and Black politics and activism. The winners also write a series of posts on the Society’s blog, Black Perspectives which is a global forum for news and public scholarship.

–Mary Beth Clack, Cindy Coldren, Pat Krol
–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church Jan. 3, 2024