Equal Justice Initiative has released a new report, Unreliable Verdicts: Racial Bias and Wrongful Convictions. The report documents how excluding Black people and other people of color from juries can increase the chance of a wrongful conviction, especially in death penalty cases.
The report cites an incident from a 2017 trial in Renton, WA, showing that our region is not immune from this type of bias. Section 5, entitled Profiles in Exoneration is a particularly powerful section filled with stories of people who were wrongfully convicted by non-diverse juries.
Reports like these help us to better understand where bias and discrimination persist in our systems of justice so that we can advocate for changes that will make the system more fair for everyone.
In BelPres' Just Neighbors sermon series, we learned about the history of redlining and how it has contributed to the wealth gap between Black and White families in the United States and our region. A new self-guided walking tour lets you get a first-hand look at how redlining shaped Seattle.
Created by long-time residents of the Central District, the tour takes you on a tour of the neighborhood, either in-person or virtually. Download the app to your phone, grab a friend, and take a guided walk around the Central District to learn this history. Or, visit the website and experience the tour virtually. You can learn more about how the tour was developed in this Seattle Times article.
Check out this Seattle Times article to find events from local cultural, community, and arts organizations to celebrate Black History Month in Seattle.
Learn about Black American History with Crash Course Black American History, a series of videos featuring important people and historical events. Editor's Note: Be sure to check out the video on one of my personal heroes: Ida B. Welles.
A Documentary Review by Vicki Foreman
In early May 2020, Snohomish, WA, 30 miles north of Seattle, was in the running to be named "Coolest Small Town in America". On May 31st that image was changed by an armed group claiming to be protecting the businesses of Snohomish from the local people who had staged a peaceful protest the night before, standing against the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
By Heather Hedlund and Tom Shaw
At our November meeting, the J&RR team welcomed guest speaker Chelir Mule-Kivindyo, the Associate Director of Student Development for InterVarsity's National Black Campus Ministries (BCM) Department. She also oversees the InterVarsity campus ministry at Texas Southern University, a historic Black university. InterVarsity ministers to college students around the nation with evangelism, Bible study, Christian community, and leadership development. Chelir has planted InterVarsity chapters at several HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) in the Red River Region (Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Arkansas).
Throughout the Just Neighbors sermon series, we learned about God's call to bring justice where we live and how to use our property and land for his purposes to heal the spiritual and physical effects of redlining and racially restrictive covenants in Seattle and the Eastside.
As you think about how to put this into practice in your own life, take advantage of the following opportunities to learn more.
Juneteenth marks the day when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, finally learned of their freedom. On June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger read the proclamation declaring the end of slavery, "All slaves are free." Although the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed more than two years before, and the Civil War had ended on April 9, 1865, many enslavers in Texas had withheld this news from the humans they had enslaved.
Juneteenth is a day of both celebration and reflection. We celebrate the progress that has been made since the end of slavery. We also reflect on the work that still needs to be done to ensure that all people, made in God's image, are treated justly.
September 15 to October 15 is National Hispanic American Heritage Month. This is a month celebrated nationwide to honor the history, culture, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans. Set aside some time this month to learn from and about this community.
Learn about History
Watch the 6-part documentary series Latino Americans from PBS to learn about the history of Latinos over the last 500 years.
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