Trinity's Session Speaks Up on Black Lives Matter and Racial Injustice
Protests have broken out across the country over the tragic and senseless killings of several African Americans at the hands of the police. These precious lives include Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and Tacoma’s Manuel Ellis, among countless others. We at Trinity Presbyterian Church mourn these tragedies and stand in solidarity with our black brothers and sisters who have endured a lifetime of systemic racism.
We realize that too often the practice of the white American church is to adhere to a passivity that allows us to watch in silence while the Black community is subjugated to a racist system that dehumanizes its people and treats them as less than.
We at Trinity Presbyterian Church repent for our sins for not standing with the black community. BLACK Lives MATTER. We ask for forgiveness for hiding behind the cloak of white privilege where we show empathy but do not sacrifice or give up anything to stand up for our black brothers and sisters who cannot breathe. We will not take part in a community of silence that perpetuates the status quo.
Amos 5:24 says, “Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” Jesus lifted up the oppressed and marginalized in His day and told us to “go and do likewise.” We take this as a call to action. Dismantling systemic racism must be part of our DNA. Racism and white privilege stand in denial of God’s purpose on this earth.
We are called to be a place of healing and hope. We pledge to make a three-fold commitment in the following ways:
1) As individuals, to both study and confess our own biases, and to change those parts of ourselves that need transformation.
2) As a congregation, we will commit to anti-racism in our relationships fostered in worship, bible study, and prayer. We will also explore ways where we need to make systemic changes within our church and in the implementation of the Bryant Neighborhood Center.
3) As part of the Tacoma community, we will listen to our Black brothers and sisters without asking them to shoulder the burden of teaching us. We will be neighbors to BIPOC congregations and listen, learn and offer support where needed. We listen, the Black community leads, and we follow.
This statement was authored by elders Don Blagsvedt and Aya Clark,
and was affirmed by the Trinity Session on Tuesday, June 16th .