What Racism Means for Those Who Are Not Black

Today’s post is from a very special guest, Dea Jenkins. We met while our family lived in Manhattan, at our faith community, Liberty, and her humility and honesty is striking. She is a remarkable artist, brilliant thinker, and a lover of humanity. Originally from Texas, she is now studying at Fuller Seminary for a dual masters degree in Theology and Intercultural Studies. When I read her recent blog, I waved a hanky, snapped my fingers, and shouted at my screen, and with her permission, I bring it to you, with the hopes that we will continue to grow and change in the way of Jesus. Please welcome my friend Dea, and share her work broadly with your network, friends and family.

I’ve spent the past several weeks moving through a strange cycle of grief and hope. The obvious source of my grief is blatantly plastered on every major news source in this country, and more recently, on news sources around the world. Though the name is fresh in the minds of Americans across this nation, I write the name “George Floyd” with deep care and respect. This name will change history. This name will forever alter the course of this nation’s trajectory.

The path we were on as a country abruptly halted with the emergence of COVID-19, and now we are watching whole systems quiver at the spillover of anger and frustration. I call the protests and looting that began last week “spillover”, because this point in time has been coming since the first African set foot on this land a few hundred years ago. We are not so far from that time to not still feel the reverberation of its impact. That step caused shock waves to ripple under the earth.

Had Africans stepped onto this land free, perhaps we would hear the waves of joyous music celebrating that every man and woman in this nation had the opportunity to pursue “life, liberty, and justice” without the constant threat of “death, oppression, and  prejudice”. Had Europeans and Africans stepped onto this land welcomed by the native peoples who already populated this side of the world, perhaps we would not hear the wails of sirens, the crackling of burning buildings and police cars, and the cries of people in anger and anguish.

While I find it futile to dwell on notions of what could have been, I do find it important to reckon with what is and what will be due to what has been. We, the American people, will reckon with what has been. I heed the clear warning in Galatians 7, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A [country] reaps what [it] sows.” We have yet to fully reap what we have sown, and racism will continue to spit in all of our faces until we squarely face it head on.

I stress the “we” in this expression for several reasons, the chief being that there is no true understanding of “America” without consideration of all of its sub Americas. “America” is not the equivalent of White America. It is White America, Black America, Native America, Latino/a America, Asian America, North America, and South America. Our grasp of this reality is critical, because we have to realize that when any part of America kills the expression of another part of America, we are all suffering. In essence, we are eating our own flesh. We are the cause of our own destruction.

There is no scenario in which White America continues to dominate at the expense of the rest of America. This reality has already died, and we are merely watching the fruit of this era sour. The continued pursuit of what has already crumbled will only see the death of what remains. In the terms of capitalism, the unfortunate root of our nation, this endeavor is no longer sustainable. If you require the use of different terminology, then consider that there is no scenario in which a nation divided against itself can stand. If some Americans continue to take measures seeking the eradication of other Americans, all of America will perish. This is physics, this is karma, this is business, this is scripture.

Matthew 12 serves as a reminder that, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?” If even the devil knows not to split his own efforts, how foolish are we to believe that there can be an America so divided?

This is the point I wish to make to every person living in this country who is not Black. While I appreciate the demonstrations of “solidarity”, I find the common, yet fuzzy, understanding of that term misleading. From the way I’ve heard the expression “standing in solidarity” used, it often comes from people who are not Black who wish to express that they believe that racism is wrong and that they seek to stand with those who have faced the brunt of the effects of racial structures.

However, what I find more urgent is the need for every person who is not Black to reckon with how racism will eventually destroy your own life. You are not safe just because your skin is not black. While you may feel that you have a choice of whether to engage in the movement to eradicate racism, if you value the quality of your life and that of your family’s, then in all actuality you do not. The poison of racism has already infected every social structure our nation has depended on. It will eventually make its way to you. It is not enough to uplift the lives of parts of America as though you somehow stand outside of a collective ill. The impact of any oppressive force that infiltrates our collective reality will eventually find its poisonous effects at your feet. “I can’t breathe” will soon be the cry on all of our lips. If George Floyd cannot breathe, then eventually you will not be able to breathe either.

My ask is that every non-Black person reading this grasp the reality that racism will eventually destroy our country, along with you and those you love. This is not a fight for just Black people, though we have undeniably lived through the most brutal expressions of its effects. While you may not feel the full effects of racism in your own lifetime, there will eventually come a time when your family’s opportunities will diminish because of its impact. I reiterate- racism is poison. Poison does not care which parts of a body it impacts, because it seeks to spread as far as it can. Open your eyes and realize that you are in as grave a situation as the Black Americans you seek to console and stand alongside. To phrase this another way, if the nation were a ship, then we would all be sinking.

I began this reflection stating that I found myself moving between grief and hope. While grief is evident, I must also give credence to the stubborn hope that continues to find its way into my prayers and my art. I wish to make it very clear that I do not find hope in people, at least not in people alone. My hope is firmly placed in my belief that God has not left this country, though as a nation we seem keen to separate ourselves from God. There is still time to, in biblical language, repent.

I believe that the Church has a key role to play in this. The words God spoke to Israel in 2 Chronicles 7 also apply to us today, “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” This is a promise from God, and from experience I can confidently state that God keeps God’s promises.

I urge us to remember that when we say “prayer” we should understand that expression as one of communication and action. If you feel led to pray, also consider how you should act. A conversation with God should lead you to actively pursue the fruits of that conversation through your actions. If you don’t know where to start, get educated. Start by reading books and listening to lectures on racism. Please do not burden those who are at the forefront of this fight with requests that they educate you. Do your own work. Google “books on racism” and see what you find. You can do the same for lectures posted on YouTube, and there are several. I encourage you to back up your kind expressions of “solidarity” with action that can lead to social change for the good of us all.

Learn More: Dea Jenkins is an interdisciplinary artist originally from Houston, Texas. She and her family began moving cross-country when Dea was 10 years old, and she has lived in numerous cities since then. Dea didn’t begin her journey with the arts until she moved back to Houston from Chantilly, Virginia after graduating high school. Through a series of life twists, including deciding not to pursue a career as a professional track runner, Dea “accidentally” discovered an interest and a talent for art making.

As she discovered the world of painting, drawing, and graphic design, she ultimately chose to pursue an undergraduate degree in filmmaking from The Art Institute of Houston. Filmmaking taught her the value of producing. As a producer she discovered that she could create spaces to share her own work, but also generate opportunities for other creative minds to journey with her on these projects.

In 2017, Dea moved to Pasadena, California to pursue a dual masters degree in Theology and Intercultural Studies. Her emphasis in Theology and the Arts has grounded her artistic practice, helped her connect her film studies with theology, and prepared her to continue creating spaces for individual and collective healing. Post-graduation, she is currently engaging questions on spirituality, collective consciousness, and social healing through multiple mediums. Please visit her website: https://deajenkins.com/