Brian Brandsmeier was a religious leader in St. Louis and is now a teacher in Iowa City.
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A Stolen Sign
Image via Joseph Sohm/Shutterstock
It can be dangerous to be black. In 2012, a black person was killed every 28 hours by law enforcement officials or self-styled "vigilantes." About 27 percent of African-Americans live below the poverty line. Black families are seven times more likely to be homeless than white families. African-Americans are four times more likely to be murdered than the national average.
It's not about semantics. It's about systems (and minds) that need to be changed for the betterment of the future. And that future will, in fact, be better for all lives.
Lord Have Mercy: A Prayer for Colorado
People pray for victims of the Aurora shooting during a Mitt Romney rally in New Hampshire Friday.Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty
Loving God,
Darkness has covered our nation and thick darkness has descended upon our people. Tragedy has clouded out the light. Shots rang out in Aurora, Colorado. Some people were wounded by gas and bullets. Others were murdered.
In this time of darkness may your resilient light shine forth.
May your light shine on the family and friends of the 12 people who were killed during this senseless crime. There's no way to explain the darkness that indiscriminately murders children, women, and men. They were each someone's son, daughter, mother, or father — and nobody can fully understand the immense grief and righteous anger of their loved ones. They need your light, Loving God. Please pour it forth....
'The Jungle' in Postville Affects Us All
Agriprocessors, the largest kosher slaughterhouse in the U.S., has developed a longstanding reputation for abusing animals, workers, and laws. The abuses have been documented and decried by labor unions, religious leaders, animal rights groups, etc. Children as young as 13 work in dangerous conditions. Cows have their windpipes ripped out while they are still conscious and alive. Central Americans were hired illegally to work long hours with little pay. Untreated sewage has been dumped into the [...]