Dear Friends,
Communities of faith and people across the nation are joining the movement to confront the sins of racism and white supremacy. They are coming together to demand that Black lives of every age, gender, gender identity and sexuality are no longer ignored, dismissed or pushed to the margins of our society. They are protesting the unlawful and unjust killings of innocent Black individuals.
The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) affirms that all Black Lives Matter.
The Presbyterian Week of Action, Aug. 24–30, is an endeavor to provide a public witness that facilitates education, visibility and action that reinforces our PC(USA) statements and policy that support eradicating racism and acknowledge that God loves all Black lives.
In “Responding to the Sin of Racism and a Call to Action,” the 224th General Assembly (2020) declared, “Our country’s most important institutions have been built to sustain white privilege, to protect white lives and white property at the expense of our siblings of color. The church through ignorance, denial, and in some cases deliberate action, has participated in this injustice. We have been slow to face the reality of systemic racism. We have been slow to acknowledge the pain of our fellow Presbyterians, of our fellow Christians, of our fellow citizens, and of those who have come to America for a better life, whose value has been judged by the color of their skin.” The Assembly called the Church to “actively confront and dismantle systemic racism in our church and in society at large, and to work for a more just, merciful, and peaceful country that allows all of God’s children to flourish.”
By joining together as national staff and the greater Church, we hope to provide faithful leadership in the area of justice, love and equality within our denomination and communities.
Join with us, the national office and PC(USA) churches across the nation, the week of Aug. 24–30. Events will include a town hall, film screening, a rally and a day of service to our communities. Act now by planning to participate in the daily schedule of events and share the news with our digital toolkit.
While we recognize and honor the good work toward justice that has been ongoing in our denomination, we also realize that in this time it is not enough. Though the Presbyterian Week of Action hopes to meet the immediacy of our current context, it will not be the culmination of our work as a denomination, for we have a long way to go to eradicate systemic racism and white supremacy. Nonetheless, this week will empower us, challenge us and enliven the faith we follow.