On Michael Brown and Ferguson Missouri

Regular followers to this blog will know that I often write of international injustice. But now injustice is in "my own backyard."

In Ferguson, Missouri, a young black man, Michael Brown was shot 7 times and killed by a police officer. That much is not in doubt. Many claim race was a motivating factor in shooting Brown - others claim that the officer was "doing his job." I've seen "counter-claims" recently where a white person who was unarmed was shot and killed, and complaints that the media was not covering THAT issue.

Of course, ALL lives matter - Black, White, Asian, and so forth! But the Michael Brown incident does not happen in a vacuum. It speaks to the larger societal problem here in the United States. That problem being Racism.

First, we must accept that racism is real and it is ugly and it is sinful. We cannot fall into "straw man" arguments that one group is racist in a different way from another in order to justify racism. Racism exists in the hearts of all people to some degree. We must admit it, and we can then move on to fixing it. Racism against minorities, however, is at a different level - it is oppressive and it prevents real lives from reaching their God given potential. Racism is built into our very systems of life - Government, Families, Churches, Neighborhoods, and Friend Groups. When the majority (whites) recognize this, a major step has been taken.

Second, we need to understand that oppression is real. Yes, slavery has been abolished - Civil Rights Acts have been passed, but the poverty level is a systematic injustice. The counter argument will say that certain "groups" do not work hard enough to get out of poverty. We can find counter examples in any group of people. But the sad reality is that minorities have more hoops through which they must jump in order to reach the social status of whites.

Third, we must see that minorities are subjects of suspicion whether or not they are guilty. I have many friends of various minority races in the US, and most of them (including those of middle to upper-middle class members) can recount more than one time where they were followed in a store as being suspected as a potential thief. Others have been asked why they were in a certain space when they were causing no trouble. The list continues. Yes, some minorities cause problems. Some whites cause problems. The color of one's skin does not predispose someone to leading a criminal or virtuous life. It is sad that a minority child must learn that he or she will be suspected as a criminal before he or she even becomes an adult. I can't even imagine what pressure that brings to the mind of a child.

I don't have the answers for what we can do to fix all of this. The "fixes" must come from the micro and the macro levels. As individuals we must be willing to cross the barriers and stand with the oppressed. We can't all travel to Ferguson, but we can all do something for race equality in our own areas. At the macro level, our "justice" system must be truly that - a JUSTICE system for all people! This may mean the passing of laws, enforcing existing laws, and doing what it takes to protect the inherent rights of our minority brothers and sisters.

And most importantly, I believe that is the answer. One day, we must stop saying we are "allies," but we must say that we are brothers and sisters. When we say it, we must mean it!

God help us!

Colonialism Redux

Colonialism used to be easy to define. One nation with advanced weaponry would invade another nation (usually a South American or African nation) with less advanced weaponry, enslave the people, and exploit the resources.  Millions of innocent lives were lost to Colonialism, dignity was lost, basic human rights were lost.  What the world is not understanding is that Colonialism has taken another form in today's world. The players are the same, but the tactics are different. Sadly, the results remain just as tragic.

We no longer live in a world where an outright invasion in order to steal the resources of another nation would be tolerated. Of course, that is violated from time to time under the pretension that the nation that is invaded is a global threat, developing weapons of mass destruction, or some other insidious lie.  We saw this when the US and the UK invaded Iraq. Yes, Saddam Hussein was a brutal dictator. I will not defend him, but the motives for going to war had nothing to do with weapons of mass destruction. The motives were a form of colonialism. Thousands of US and British soldiers as well as innocent Iraqis and Iraqi soldiers lost their lives in what was based on a lie. Is the world better off without Saddam? That is a question I cannot answer. The Sermon on the Mount does not give me permission to hate even those who hate me. Truth be told, I would rather not have to deal with the likes of Saddam, but to wish his death is equal to hate.

We now see Russia and the United States engaged in a new "Cold War" over Ukraine. Do not be fooled. Neither nation has one bit of sympathy for the innocent citizens of Ukraine who are victims in these battles. Both nations are engaged in a battle of wills for resources and the hearts and minds of the Ukrainian Government that will ultimately feed those resources to either the US or to Russia.

This week, US President Barack Obama held a forum for African leaders. He praised Rwandan strongman dictator Paul Kagame for his leadership and even gave a nod to the ineffective dictator of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Joseph Kabila. At the same time, Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was not even invited to the summit. As I later found out, Mugabe is not even allowed to travel within the US Border.

If we look at the human rights records of these three African leaders you will see first of all that people who are in leadership of a nation are forced to make decisions that I as a Christian cannot ethically or morally make. The same can be said for ANY nation! But, how can two men (Kabila and Kagame) who are personally responsible for the deaths of at least a very conservative estimate of 6 million innocent people be praised for their leadership? How can a president (Mugabe) who refuses to allow Zimbabwe to be robbed of its minerals be considered a criminal?

This all goes back to "Colonialism Redux." Instead of directly invading nations, the powerful nations install or support puppet governments. It is public record that President Bill Clinton blocked every measure in the UN to send aid during the Rwandan Genocide so that Kagame's RPF could take control of Rwanda.  It is well known and reported that Kagame sends militias into the Congo under the pretext of eliminating the FDLR (an opposition group - or now - a refugee group of Rwandans who cannot return safely to Rwanda). Under this pretext, he is funneling the minerals so rich in Congo to Rwanda and ultimately to the US and UK.

Why would the nations support Joseph Kabila? One could find a rock with more leadership skills than this president. He does nothing, rigs elections, and allows his nation to be raped and pillaged.  That is why powerful nations call him a leader they can support.

Colonialism is far from over! It is time for citizens to demand that other people around the world without a voice be treated as humans created in the image of God.

It is time we stop listening to the xenophobic rants of pundits such as Ann Coulter who says that our concern should only be within our own borders and that the battle is really between liberals and conservatives. This is a red herring meant to distract. God knows no borders. Liberal and Conservative are misnomers (at best) and false labels.

Colonialism must be called what it is. The enslaved must be set free.