“What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” –Micah 6:8
Bread for the World denounces the tragic killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and generations of Africans and their descendants in the United States and around the globe who have been devastated by unjust policing practices and violence rooted in a history of structural racism and inequity.
Committed to improving and protecting the lives of those who suffer from these atrocities globally, we affirm and are attentive to the lament and hopes of the African diaspora, then and now. We stand alongside all people of color who resist and are impacted by the evil of systems, structures, and relationships of racial inequity, violence, sustained injury, and trauma. We heed and lend our voice to the cry, “Black Lives Matter,” and unite in pioneering a timely response that honors and builds upon this historic lineage of resistance to such evil. We further call upon the Christian community to seize this teachable moment and rekindle our confession that all people are created in the image of God and that the love of God, justice, and mercy is for everyone, without exception. In so doing, we welcome the many voices of our member churches and networks who have led this confession in their statements and actions.
Still, we confess that statements and past actions are not enough. New and renewed acts of repentance, healing, and transformation are required of us. Therefore, we receive anew the biblical call to life, racial justice, healing, and transformation for ourselves and for others with deepened acts of conversion and repentance that can repair and heal our land. While Bread for the World has demonstrated a substantive commitment to this call in our advocacy agenda to end hunger and address poverty, we know more is required.
Therefore, we recommit to lament and learn from our national and global inequitable past and present both within and outside of our own institution. We recommit to finding tangible ways to ensure we neither repeat nor perpetuate, but instead redress, the horrors of unjust policies and practices that have oppressed and suppressed the beauty and gifts of Africans and their descendants, and all people of color. We further recommit to apply a racial equity lens to our work and practices. We recommit to finding new and racially equitable ways to come alongside people of color, nationally and globally, as they continue to lead us to a more racially inclusive and equitable world.
Closing Prayer
O God of Justice and Mercy,
We prayerfully lament and repent from our sins of the past and present, find hope and redemption in the resurrected Jesus Christ, and welcome your Holy Spirit to show us new and relevant ways to embrace an evolving revelation of how to act more justly with love, boldness, and courage. In this endeavor, we stand alongside all who are impacted by racism, violence, and trauma in the U.S. and throughout the world. Amen and Ashe.
Additional statements and resources on systemic racism and violence as a root cause of hunger:
- Joint National Anti-Hunger Organizations Statement Denouncing Structural Racism and Violence
- Lament and Hope Pan African Devotional Guide
- Criminal Justice Reform and Hunger
- Applying a Racial Equity Lens to End Hunger
To connect and learn of upcoming events sponsored by our Pan African Young Adult Network (PAYAN), visit facebook.com/payanbreadfortheworld
For our latest Latino engagement news and events, follow @bread_latino
Bread for the World is a collective Christian voice urging our nation’s decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad.
