“So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth,” state the Baha’i Holy Writings. Thus the age old yet still effective ploy, “Divide and conquer.”

But what is real unity? In nature we find various collective expressions of unity still generally perceived as uniformity and therefore not enthusiastically embraced. In humankind a distinction exists between various groups according to lineage, with each group forming a genetic racial unity separate from the others. Not superior or inferior, only separate and potentially equal when given equal opportunity, education, and healthcare. Continue reading The power of unity at harvest time →

This year, 2020, marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of Negro League Baseball. Led by the impressive Rube Foster, the Negro National League (NLL) organized itself in February of 1920.

The third decade of the 20th century was the beginning of the era I call “building alternative institutions.” Early in American sports history, African Americans tended to participate at the top levels in popular sports like baseball, golf, horse racing, cycling, and boxing. Continue reading Negro League Baseball 100th Anniversary →

My best Zoom experiences are those when you forget about the platform itself (and those weird little boxes) because you’re so engaged in the actual conversation. It’s like you are actually in the same room together. This is the feeling I had recently speaking with leaders in the faith community about the power of the church to help organize lasting social change. On this Zoom call we talked about how this is our moment to be part of this bigger movement for justice. I love how the United Church of Christ isn’t shy about mixing our faith with politics because we know that at the heart of the Gospel is Jesus’ commitment to the spiritual, mental, and physical freedom and liberation of people wronged by unjust systems of oppression. Continue reading Trauma Informed Voting →

I think that every being is made in the image of God. As such, you have a responsibility to see all other beings made in that image as well, including people who don’t look like you. All these images have a right and a duty to have their voices heard. In an election, that means you have to VOTE. Continue reading A letter to the editor about voting →

Life is a constant struggle, not only against the forces around us but greater still, against the forces within us. The biggest deterrent to spiritual and subsequent societal progress derives from the smallest world, the human “ego.” Through such self-destructive instrument all of the attributes and actions which tend to separate us from other human beings become obscure and indistinguishable. Too often severe tests are necessary to burn away the hard covering of egotism from the mirror of the heart that the revitalizing Sun of Truth and reality may shine through. Continue reading God’s greatest gift to man →

As you may know, the barely literate white registrars could test the literacy of blacks applying to vote. Here is a joke about voting I used to hear in my youth. Remember, this was partially true in many cases.

A black man in some small town in Georgia goes to register to vote, and the registrar asks, “What does this part of the U.S. Constitution say in Chinese?” Continue reading Limiting the Vote →