Issue 24 Towards HealingBlog | Healing the racial divide of generations?
Healing the racial divide of generations?
Author: Andy PeckPost Date: 12.09.20
Healing the racial divide of generations? Over the last few months, we have witnessed and felt the effects of a virus that began on one side of the globe then spread indiscriminately from country to country impacting global economies, health systems, religious systems and our personal lives. We have seen how something that begins with one person can spread from individual to individual, ultimately revealing just how connected we all are.
In the last few weeks, the world has been forced to address another virus – a virus which also affects economies, health systems, religious systems – the depth of this virus is unknown and it’s the virus of racial injustice. It is a virus close to home and I have, in recent times, questioned how healing can be found.
Social media has connected this generation in a unique way. We watch world events together, we watch royal weddings, popular television shows and sporting events. As the world watched the murder of George Floyd by a white police officer who knelt on George’s neck for more than 8 minutes, I wondered what did the world see? What did the church see? Did we see a father who would never see his daughter again? Did we see a son? Did we see a white police officer and a black man? Did we see colour at all? Did we see systematic racism on full display? Did we reduce the incident to an American problem? Did we acknowledge this as an area requiring healing? In the words of Dr Anita Phillips, ‘Hurt must be heard before it can be healed.’
