In the wake of the death of George Floyd and the protests in response, Pax Christi USA offers various resources for prayer, study and action in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and drawing on Catholic theology, spirituality and practice on this page.
- Use the resources from our Birth of a Movement Study Circles, looking more closely at Olga Segura’s book, Birth of a Movement: Black Lives Matter and the Catholic Church. (originally offered May-July 2021)
- Click here for our organizational statement following the verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin.
- Click here for media statements, including from Bishop-President, Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv., on the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial.
- Click here to read our statement on the murder of George Floyd.
- Click here for our statement on how white fragility cannot block the conversations we need to have on race within our Church.
THE LATEST RESOURCES
- November 19, 2022 – Exploring White Nationalism webinar
- June 7, 2022 – (De)Facing White Supremacy webinar
- June 2, 2022 – The Color of Peace, a series in preparation for Juneteenth
- May 18, 2022 – Statement on white nationalism and the mass shooting in Buffalo
PAST PSAs (PRAY-STUDY-ACT E-BULLETINS) RELATED TO RACIAL JUSTICE
- Reconsidering our white Christmases: A prayer-study-action resource from the Pax Christi Anti-Racism Team, January 21, 2022
- Juneteenth – Let us not forget: Pray, Study, Act, June 19, 2021
- “This MLK holiday, let us remember, honor and embody his witness,” January 2021 Pray-Study-Act e-bulletin
- December 2, 2020 Pray-Study-Act e-bulletin for the 2nd week of Advent with resources on racial justice, BLM, and more…
- June 3, 2020, Pray-Study-Act e-bulletin on Black Lives Matter: Dismantling the Racism that Seeds Terror, Disfigures Our Humanity
PRAYER
- See our Prayer for Dismantling Racism, written by the Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team, under the section “Prayer” in this email bulletin
- Requiem for Black Children of God, by Bishop Fernand Cheri
- An Examen for White Allies, by Maddie Murphy
- Litany for Racial Justice
STUDY
On Black Lives Matter, racial justice, racial equity and the Catholic Church
- “Blessed is the one who stays awake” – Our response to criticism of today’s movements for social justice
- Are racial justice movements straying from Catholic tradition — or are Catholic leaders out of touch?, by Alessandra Harris
- National Black Sisters’ Conference issues statement on Archbishop Gómez’s speech against social justice movements
- Black Catholics respond with dismay as Gomez calls protests “pseudo-religions”
- The Catholic Church in Black and White: The Bystander Syndrome, by Pearlette Springer
- The Catholic Church in Black and White, by Vicki Lott
- “The intersection between the heart of Christ and Juneteenth,” by Leslye Colvin
- Birth of a Movement Study Circles looking more closely at Olga Segura’s new book, Birth of a Movement: Black Lives Matter and the Catholic Church.
- What Black Lives Matter can teach Catholics about racial justice, by Olga Segura
- If racial justice and peace will ever be attained, it must begin in the church, by Shannen Dee Williams
- How can Catholics help lead the fight against racism? by Olga Segura
- How the church can combat racism and white privilege, an interview with Rev. Bryan Massingale
- A four part video series on “Understanding and Dismantling Racism,” by former Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team member, Tom Cordaro, done for a parish audience
- Your Struggle is My Struggle, an episode on the Parting the Waters podcast featuring former Pax Christi USA National Council member Adrienne Alexander, co-author with Michael N. Okińczyc-Cruz of the article, “Black & Latino Catholics agree: Our lives matter”
- Four one-page inserts on important African Americans, provided by the Catholic Racial Justice Collaborative) to share with church or school communities
On white privilege and white fragility
- The assumptions of white privilege and what we can do about it, by Rev. Bryan Massingale
- “Dear White Catholics: It’s time to be anti-racist and leave white fragility behind,” by Andrew Lyke
- It’s OUR racism, by Mary Yelenick, Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team
- The violence of White silence: Sick as our secrets, by Kim Redigan, Pax Christi Michigan
- The unspoken fear: What scares many white people about the changing demographics of the U.S. & how too many churches are feeding into it,” by Pax Christi USA Ambassador of Peace Tom Cordaro
On racial justice and intersectionality
- “White Catholics today condemn slavery. But are they ready to fight its new manifestation—mass incarceration?” by Alessandra Harris
- Media statement: This acquittal highlights white privilege, this culture of violence, and our addiction to guns
- Watch “Policing – Abolition or Reform?” with panelists from the Pax Christi Young Adult Caucus
- “The racist attack on the U.S. Capitol,” by Rev. Bryan Massingale
- “Guns are white supremacy’s deadliest weapon. We must disarm hate,” by Rev. Sharon Risher
- “The intersection between nuclear abolition and racial justice,” by Nick Mele
- “Pandemic & privilege: U.S. policies and practices condemn our sisters and brothers to death by coronavirus,” by Mary Yelenick
- A webinar on economic and interracial justice by Pax Christi USA National Council member and Pax Christi Anti-Racism Team member Dr. Vicki Lott
- Housing discrimination persists in leaving no room at the inn for people of color, from the Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team
- Economic justice through an anti-racist lens, from the Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team
On anti-racism, nonviolence and Pax Christi USA
- The Color of Peace series
- “White nationalism is the gravest threat to peace” states Rev. Bryan Massingale in accepting the 2021 Teacher of Peace Award
- An anti-racist critique of Pax Christi USA’s theology and practice of nonviolence, by Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team member Tom Cordaro
- The importance of anti-racism training for white activists in Pax Christi USA, by Pax Christi USA Ambassador of Peace Beatrice Parwatikar
- Building accountable relationships with communities of color: Lessons learned, by the Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team for White Pax Christi folks
Overviews and analyses
- Pax Christi Anti-Racism Team chair Pearlette Springer reflects after the Chauvin verdict: “Post-traumatic stress at its finest: After the trial, when does the healing begin?”
- Telling the truth about history is a first step, by Dr. Vicki Lott
- Black Catholic History: Vision, Voice and Vigilance, a webinar from the Catholic Racial Justice Collaborative in St. Louis; watch the video here.
- Find resources for incorporating the work of Black Catholics into our educational institutions by going to this link to the Black Catholic Syllabus by Tia Noelle Pratt, Ph.D.
- A Black Catholic Syllabus, from US Catholic
ACTION
- Pax Christi USA supports NETWORK’s invitation to pray for a national reparations study commission, February 2023
- At start of Black History Month, Pax Christi USA joins over 350 groups to urge U.S. House leadership to back H.R. 40; contact your representatives!
- Click here for a short report and photos on our Black Lives Matter action on June 2, 2020 outside the St. John Paul II Shrine in Washington, DC.
- Support the BREATHE Act
- Ongoing action opportunities from Color of Change
- 75 things White people can do for racial justice
- Supporting people’s right to vote, ideas from the Pax Christi USA Anti-Racism Team (originally posted for 2016 election)
- Note to self: White people taking part in #BlackLivesMatter protests, by Vonn New, AFSC
- “Direct Action Training in Defense of Black Lives” – A recorded webinar (and extensive notes) hosted by the Deaconess Foundation and Metropolitan Congregations United
- Find resources for incorporating the work of Black Catholics into our educational institutions by going to this link to the Black Catholic Syllabus by Tia Noelle Pratt, Ph.D.
PAST PAX CHRISTI USA STATEMENTS
- Media statement: This acquittal highlights white privilege, this culture of violence, and our addiction to guns (11/19/21)
- “Blessed is the one who stays awake” – Our response to criticism of today’s movements for social justice (11/9/21)
- Justice requires more: A Pax Christi USA statement following the verdict in the Chauvin trial (4/23/21)
- Media statements: On the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial for the murder of George Floyd (4/20/21)
- White fragility cannot block the conversations we need to have on race in the Church (7/12/20)
- Media statement: Focus on justice for George Floyd, not judging protesters (6/1/20)
- Statement on the death of George Floyd and the racism that seeds terror, disfigures our humanity (5/27/20)
- Statement: Mass shooting tragedies are the expected consequences of hatred and violence (8/5/19)
- Statement on the events in Charlottesville: Silence is the softer voice of racism (8/14/17)
- Statement on racial violence in the United States (7/11/16)
- Statement on the massacre in Charleston, S.C. (6/23/15)
- Statement following the grand jury decision in the Michael Brown shooting (11/25/14)
- Statement on the killing of Michael Brown by police in Ferguson, MO (8/15/14)
- Statement on the U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding the Voting Rights Act (7/23/13)
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ARCHIVE
>> For resources for prayer, study and action for Black History Month 2022, click here.
2021
- National Council Chair Isaac Chandler reflects on Black History Month, recent events & more in February letter to membership
- Black Catholic History: Vision, Voice and Vigilance, a webinar on Sunday, 2/28 at 4pm ET from the Catholic Racial Justice Collaborative in St. Louis; watch the video here.
- Celebrating Faithful Democracy as Black History Town Hall, Thursday, 2/25 at 4:30pm ET
- A reflection for the first Sunday of Lent from M. Shawn Copeland, Ph.D.
- Your Struggle is My Struggle, a recent episode on the Parting the Waters podcast featuring former Pax Christi USA National Council member Adrienne Alexander, co-author with Michael N. Okińczyc-Cruz of the article, “Black & Latino Catholics agree: Our lives matter”
- The Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr., a video presentation by Dr. Vicki Vernon Lott, Pax Christi USA National Council member
- “Guns are white supremacy’s deadliest weapon. We must disarm hate.” by Rev. Sharon Risher
- Find resources for incorporating the work of Black Catholics into our educational institutions by going to this link to the Black Catholic Syllabus by Tia Noelle Pratt, Ph.D.
- Download this resource packet from the Archdiocese of Washington, DC’s Office of Black Catholics created for the observance of #BlackCatholicHistoryMonth.
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For additional resources, click here.