Dear friends,
What a horrible, horrifying week this has been. Fires are raging in California; an “unsurvivable” hurricane has battered Louisiana—horrible. Jacob Blake is paralyzed after being shot in the back seven times by a police officer; demonstrators Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber were killed by a 17-year-old with an assault rifle—horrifying. A reminder of the urgent need to work for racial justice; a reminder of why we need to keep saying that Black Lives Matter.
I was struck by the decision of the Milwaukee Bucks (and other NBA teams) to boycott the playoff games on Wednesday night. I was moved by the heart-wrenching testimonies of athletes and coaches, sharing their personal anguish at the persistence of racial injustice in our nation.
Their decision emerged from their sense that playing basketball that night would be wrong—a denial of the reality of the injustice and the pain of the people of Kenosha and our nation. It was not a time for “business as usual.”
They realized their actions would be noticed and their voices would be heard. They seized the opportunity to use their unique role as professional athletes to call attention to injustice and make a difference.
Their actions invite us to ask ourselves two important questions, as individuals and as a community:
- What are the ways we are called to pause “business as usual,” in order to honor the suffering of this moment and highlight the urgent need for change?
- What particular roles do we play—in society, in community, among friends and family—that we can draw upon? While most of us do not have the national profile professional athletes have, each of us has a sphere of influence. How do we use our influence—our power— to make a difference?
I invite you to join me in reflecting on these questions and responding with our actions.
Peace, Debbie