I’ve watched countless exclusive and “breaking news” segments since the story broke on the sermon fragments of our brother and friend, Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr., and the almost non-stop assault on Dr. Wright and daily inspection on Senator Barack Obama. The more I watch and hear, the more I feel a sense of dis-ease, so much until I just had to say something.

First, regardless of who we have selected or will select in the Democratic primaries, I think the attack on Dr. Wright’s messages, or at least the short, out of context segments we have heard of them, serve as a wake-up call for all of us who out of our Christian faith speak faithfully, prophetically and unapologetically for the cause of social justice, peace and human wholeness. At stake is our freedom to responsibly apply the glimpses we have of God’s vision for humanity, how life ought to be, to the often broken, brutal and bitter realities that form part of how life truly is. If we were to subscribe to the positions and posturing of many in media and in numerous segments of society and even the church who have little knowledge of or appreciation for prophetic ministry and even less appreciation for the people who are denied access to the goods and services they need to live abundantly, particularly because of the color of their skin, we would reduce our faith to little more than a system of adherence to alienation and theological emptiness, both rooted more in our allegiance to our own security than in our trust in the vision of God.

Second, the moral outrage that was reflected, boldly so, in Dr. Wright’s sermon fragments is real. I do not have to tell you this. Just a few months ago, I moved from the Seattle area to my hometown of Cleveland, a place I have not lived on a full-time basis since I left for college in1977. The Cleveland I left in 1977 was a city broken and divided by race with the majority of Whites calling the West side home and African Americans residing on the East side. I often think of my matriculation in the city’s public school system, and how many of the “new” school books East side students received were in fact new to us, even as they reportedly had already been used by White students on the West side. I remember three years of college preparatory classes in high school that featured only one final exam and one term paper, while my White counterparts on the West side who were expected to do well in college were actually prepared to succeed once enrolled. It was no wonder that on campus, scores of African Americans from the Cleveland schools failed to survive the rigors of true college life and were dismissed before the end of their first year. You see, when many school decision makers crafted and shaped plans for academic achievement and social productivity, African Americans did not fit the mold and were not part of the plans.

By the grace of God, many African American students from the Cleveland schools overcame the systemic slander and race-based biases, and graduated from college and are contributing not only to the good of African Americans but to the common good. Yet to survive in the classroom and on campus, we were told we had to be twice as good as our White counterparts, just to get one half of the respect and acceptance they received by accident of their birth. In my view, the same is true now. To me, it is true in society and it is true in the church.

When I became a church official during the 1990's, I believed wholeheartedly in the concept of the common good. To be sure, I had a strong history of promoting multiculturalism and working to dismantle racism. Besides this, I understood the dynamics of congregational and institutional transformation before they became mainstream. I understood that I was heading to a seemingly progressive, sophisticated, professional work environment that understood social justice and was ready to embrace an African American in the lead role even as it was 99.99% White, had not even one African American congregational body, no anti-racism training, and no history of working with a Person of Color in a lead role. Once on board, several individuals and congregations took me seriously and afforded me dignity and respect that all human beings deserve. The stings of obvious systemic racism as I had known in the past appeared to be absent in my new setting. I thrived in a climate that accepted and celebrated women in leadership as well as gays and lesbians. Yet the more I worked in this environment, the more I became aware of a painful reality: liberalism and sophisticated thought and action on peace and acceptance of women and GLBTQ people do not necessarily translate into sophisticated and knowledgeable thought and just action on the subject of race.

Differences that should have been addressed with dignity and straightforwardness were avoided by “progressive” people who shut down the communication process with me for fear that our differences would lead them to being labeled as racist. When I complained about the “race card” being played in the shadows with opinions and decisions being reached by White leadership with no serious consideration of how I was being disenfranchised in the process, I, myself, was accused of dealing this card! The shock of this treatment led me to open my eyes to the fact that systemically, I felt I was treated as if I were less than human. Apparently, my ministry was not worthy of a systemic discussion of what it would take for me to succeed in such an environment and how collectively we could become a healthy, just body that structured itself to help all to serve God within an atmosphere of dignity. I now believe that few people in our governance system ever fully taking me seriously as a leader who was African American who was in many ways more progressive than the system proved ready for. In fact, I was dissected, degraded, and dismissed by people who had mastered the art of progressive speech but failed in the art of progressive action when it came to the issue of race. Dignity afforded to Whites by virtue of their skin color was withheld from me because of mine. Most of my significant contributions were ignored or credited to White colleagues while my mistakes were given the same kind of out of context exposure as Dr. Wright’s sermonic statements. Not one time during my tenure did my board ever formally consider who I was and what I brought to the table. Not once during my tenure did my board ask me how I experienced my nearly lily-White work context. Arrogantly, they acted as if the only reality worth considering was what they were in their past without an African American in a lead role, instead of who they could become with an African American at the helm. As I closed my ministry, one leader thanked me for teaching him about race, as if that were the sole accomplishment of my tenure. Amazingly, as he never fully saw past the color of my skin, he could never accept me as fully human. I simply told him thanks and later remarked that his learnings about race had only just begun.

Clearly, we have a right to be angry, hurt and disillusioned. I know I do.

Third, Senator Obama, and any African American or Person of Color who endeavors to serve and work in predominantly White arenas, will need the Whites who support their efforts and who are ready to actually confront realities of racism, for it is not a question of if racism will impact the Person of Color, but when this power and principality will impact the Person of Color, and how it already has impacted her or him. There can be no responsible religiosity, no authentic advocacy for justice and no credible call for peace that ignores historic and systemic racism, plays down our painful past, sees People of Color as invisible people (“We don’t see you as being Black!”), and refuses to demand that People of Color be treated with dignity, integrity and respect. Furthermore, as Dr. Wright’s words continue to reverberate in our national ears, we need to know the gifts, perspectives and realities of People of Color are worthy of honest consideration of all people, including White people, even if they indict our respective and collective ways of living and are thus, painful to hear. In short, rather than tearing apart a prophetic message, we ought to take time to prayerfully listen to it.

It is a joyful accomplishment when White liberals are progressive about peace and energetic about the environment. However, if the candidacy of Senator Obama or the leadership of other People of Color is to become truly for the common good, all of us, including White liberals, now must work for a church and society that are responsible and just on the issue of race. We must avoid the kinds of truth-free, absentee relationships that arise when parties embrace the perverse doctrines of silence and colorblindness that downgrade the images and experiences of People of Color while upgrading and protecting the privileges and realities of Whites, thus creating a liberal version of “Left Behind” with People of Color being left behind and left out of the work for true social justice and the common good. All people, including People of Color, are made in God’s image and likeness and are full of dignity and respect, not because of court rulings but because of the creative design of God.

Now let us get to work.