Racial Justice
"Love one another as I have loved you." John 15:12
As the office of Campus Ministry at a Jesuit Catholic University, we are called to promote the inherent dignity of each member of the human family. The Universal Apostolic Preferences of the Society of Jesus call us to walk with those whose dignity has been violated, in a mission of reconciliation & justice. Catholicism teaches that all people are made in the image and likeness of God & possess an inherent dignity. It also teaches that racism is a sin, an intrinsic evil which, "...divides the human family, blots out the image of God among specific members of that family, and violates the fundamental human dignity of those called to be children of the same Father (God).鈥�
While it is true that all lives possess inherent dignity, we know that racism and white supremacy benefit white people and plague people of color with oppression, trauma and violence. Faith compels us to struggle against racism and "...demands an equally radical transformation, in our own minds and hearts as well as in the structure of our society鈥�.
The first thing Pope Francis said to the world in St. Peter's square was, "I am a sinner." As a faith based office at a primarily white institution grounded in the city of Baltimore engaging in the work of racial justice, we must acknowledge the ways we participate, support or benefit from the sin of racism. We lament the ways we have fallen short, been complicit, silent or slow to respond to the sin of racism. We are sorry for the ways our actions or inactions have impacted or caused harm to our students, faculty, staff and administrators of color.
"Love ought to show itself in deeds more than words." St. Ignatius of Loyola
Our office has taken steps over the last six years to increase our commitment and resources towards racial justice. We have offered racial justice trainings for students leaders, our professional staff have attended workshops and trainings on racism, we work alongside our community to offer prayer and vigils in response to racialized violence and oppression, addressed racism through preaching and our prayer intentions in our Masses and liturgies, used our resources to partner for lectures and programming focused on racial justice and engaged our F.I.R.S.T. participants in conversations about the city of Baltimore and systemic racism through the experiential game . These have been important initial steps. Yet, faith, the Catholic Jesuit tradition, the community and our pursuit of the Magis calls us deeper into our commitment. We commit to engaging in antiracist work and allyship through a lens of faith. We offer the Loyola community space, programming, prayer, education, examination of thoughts and actions, care for those who carry the trauma and pain of racism, discernment and actions for the identifying and dismantling of racism within ourselves and institutions. We offer this not as experts free from the sin of racism but as people of faith co-laboring with a loving and merciful God and each other to bring about a more just and humane world.
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Documents and Letters
- , Archbishop William E. Lori
- , Bishop Edward K. Braxton
- , Bishop Mark Seitz
- , Department of Justice, Peace, & Human Development, 2016
- , Pastoral Letter on Racism, 1979
Prayer
- by Rev. Dr. Yolanda Pierce
- Ignatian Solidarity Network's July 10-19
- Ignatian Solidarity Network's
- Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities's
Context: Books and Articles
Articles
- By the editors of U.S. Catholic
- by M. Shawn Copeland
- by Fr. Bryan Massingale
- by Rabbi Michael Lerner
- , an interview with Fr. Bryan Massingale
- by Shannen Dee Williams
- by Robin DeAngelo
- by Jane Elliot
- by Willie James Jennings
- by Kelly Brown Douglas
- by Matthew J. Cressler
- Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II
- by Dr. David Campt
- by Patrick Saint-Jean, S.J.
Books
- How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
- Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America by Michael Eric Dyson
- Racial Justice and the Catholic Church by Bryan Massingale
- Uncommon Faithfulness: The Black Catholic Experienceedited by M. Shawn Copeland
- Christ Divided: Antiblackness as Corporate Vice by Katie Walker Grimes
- Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman
- The Cross and the Lynching Tree by James Cone
- The History of Black Catholics in the United Statesby Cyprian Davis
- The Third Reconstruction: How a Moral Movement is Overcoming the Politics of Division and Fear by Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II
- Dear White Christians: For Those Still Longing for Racial Reconciliation by Jennifer Harvey
- Reconstructing the Gospel: Finding Freedom from Slaveholder Religion by Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove
- America's Original Sin by Jim Wallis
- Why Race Matters by Cornel West
- Stamped from the Beginning: A Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds
- The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
- Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, MLK Convocation Speaker 2015
- The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine, MLK Convocation Speaker 2016
- Letters to My Black Sons: Raising Black Boys in a Post-Racial America by Karsonya Wise Whitehead
- Race Brace by Karsonya Wise Whitehead
- Me and White Supremacy Workbook by Layla F. Saad
- White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo
- Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
- So You Want to Talk About Race- Ijeoma Oluo
- The Hate U Give- Angie Thomas
- The Fire Next Time- James Baldwin
- The Color of Law- Richard Rothstein
- The Warmth of Other Suns- Isabel Wilkerson
- An African-American and Latinx History of the United States- Paul Ortiz
Videos
- , Rev. Bryan Massingale
- Rev. Bryan Massingale
- , Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II
- , Bryan Stevenson, Ted Talk
- , Ibram X. Kendi
- , Robin DiAngelo
- , Robin DiAngelo
- , Vern膩 Myers
- directed by Christine Herbes-Sommers, Tracy Heather Strain, Llewellyn Smith
- , Fr. Tim Brown, S.J.
- , Michelle Alexander at Union Theological Seminary
- , Ted Talks
- , Kimberl茅 Crenshaw
- , Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Michael Eric Dyson Mission Week Lecture
- Bryan Stevenson Mession Lecture
- Ta-Nehisi Coates MLK Convocation
- Claudia Rankine MLK Convocation
- Kailee Scales & Dr. Deepak Chopra, MD
- , a poem by Joseph A. Brown, SJ
- Voices on Equity Series: Lessons Learned & Ways to Recognize & Practice Antiracist Behavior with Dr. Karsonya Wise Whitehead, Helina Haile & Dr. Cheryl Moore-Thomas
Movies and Films
- free on HBO
- , free on HBO
- , free on HBO
- , free on HBO
- , directed by Ava DuVernay
- When They See Us, directed by Ava DuVernay
- Selma, directed by Ava DuVernay
- The Hate U Give, directed by George Tillman Jr.
- I Am Not Your Negro, directed by Raoul Peck
- Just Mercy, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton
- Best of Enemies directed by Robin Bissell
- 42 directed by Brian Helgeland
- The Doctrine of Discovery: Unmasking the Domination Code directed by Sheldon Peters Wolfchild
Podcasts and Radio
- , Dr. Karsonya Wise Whitehead on WEAA
- from the New York Times
- from NPR
- from NPR
- with Shaun King
- from On Being
- from On Being
- from On Being
- with Josie Duffy Rice
- with Sarah Koenig
- from Crooked Media
- from NPR
Training Curriculums & Other Resources
- The Antiracist Training Manual of the Episcopal Church.
- : Learning about Race and Racism through Storytelling & the Arts
- Buddhist Peace Fellowship
- , National Museum of African American History & Culture
- Courageous Conversations About Race: A Field Guide for Achieving Equity in Schools by Glenn E. Singleton
- from JustFaith Ministries
- The Racial Healing Handbook by Anneliese A Singh
- Resource Developed by Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)
- from Catholic Mobilizing Network
- Continuum on Becoming an Anti-Racist Institution
Reflection
- By Patrick Saint-Jean, S.J.
Action
- Support Students of Color at Loyola
- Study the collected by Loyola students, Emma Schiller '21, Matthew Dorsey '21, and Ahmed Jackson '21
- Attend Events
- Shut down bias and racist remarks when you hear it
- Show up and be visible
- Listen
- Make syllabi inclusive and diversify curriculums for classes and trainings
- Use your power and influence to change systems and policies in your area of control
- Attend Empower, a virtual support group for students of color at Loyola offered by the Counseling Center.
- Attend White Accountability for Dismantling Racism offered by the Counseling Center
- Attend a lunch time series offered by the Office of Equity and Inclusion
- Attend the Ignatian Solidarity Network's
- Attend the this Saturday, June 20th
- Make a financial gift to ALANA Services
- Support
- from Baltimore Magazine
- Sign petitions
- Resources for Black & African American Community Members & People of Color offered by the Counseling Center
- Sign up for a workshop with
- Attend a workshop with
- Write to Your Representatives
- Participate in
- Participate in the : July 20-August 9
- Attend the Ignatian Family Teach In For Justice: Oct 24-26
More Resources at Loyola
- ALANA Services
- Center for Community, Service, and Justice
- Counseling Center's Racial Violence & Injustice Resource Page
- Office of Equity and Inclusion
We welcome the community to offer additional resources for antiracist education, reflection, action, etc... to this webpage. Please email resource suggestions to CampusMinistry@loyola.edu