Greetings, I'm Andy Johnson, and this is a transpersonal
approach to Christianity. From the book of James,
first chapter, 27th verse, religion that God
our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this,
to look after orphans and widows in their distress
and to keep oneself from being polluted by the
world. Okay. Now Trump, posted a racist tweet
showing the heads of Barack and Michelle Obama
on monkeys, and he won't apologize for this.
And many Republican supporters refuse to call
him out for this. Now, scripture does not specifically
mention systemic racism for a variety of reasons.
But the Bible doesn't mention a lot of things.
For example, the Bible doesn't use the word rape,
nor does it mention sexual trafficking, having
sex with underage girls, disobeying the law passed
by Congress related to the Epstein file. But
it does mention concubines, and the Old Testament
seems to be pro -concubine. It also mentions
having sex with animals. And the Old Testament
is against it. And it mentions sitting on the
bed of someone who has had a semen emission during
the night. And again, the Old Testament is against
it. Now, when we read Holy Scripture of any kind,
we must listen to the likeness. and we let the
likeness speak to us, understanding the principles
of love and compassion and responsibility outlined
in the Gospels, we read scriptures and let us
speak to us. And what does it say? Galatians
3, 26 to 29, for in Christ Jesus you are all
sons of God through faith. For as many of you
were baptized into Christ to put on Christ, and
we'll talk about what Christ means another time,
there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither
slave nor free, there is neither male and female,
for you are all one in Christ Jesus. That's about
the closest we get to systemic racism. So let
us define. racism and systemic racism. Derrick
Bell defined racism as individual, structural,
political, economic, and social forces that serve
to discriminate against and disadvantage people
of color on the basis of their race for the purpose
of maintaining white dominance and power. And
systemic racism must be differentiated from racist
acts. A racist act involves one or more persons
engaged in discrimination, bigotry, hate, or
violence that is directed against one or more
people and is based on race. And while racist
acts are a result of racism, A myopic conception
of racism deflects responsibility and diminishes
the full understanding of this term. Now, some
would insist that racism is simply the actions
of a few bad apples. And this is what the people
in power want you to believe. According to the
apple theory, Ending racism is simply a matter
of apple hunting. But the apple theory serves
to cover up the larger systemic suppression and
oppression of minority populations used by those
with economic and political power. And they do
that to maintain that power. Systemic racism
is that which serves to disadvantage and restrict
people in color in ways that advance the interests
of those who are in power, who, by the way, are
overwhelmingly white males. Specifically, there's
a finger on the scale to ensure that the dominant
class has continued access to better jobs, to
loans, to housing. to good schools, to quality
teachers, and health care. And they are treated
differently by the criminal justice system. Now,
racism exists within the context of a societal
system. According to systems theory, anything
happening to one part of the system impacts the
whole. Included within our societal system are
a variety of subsystems, each of which has been
infected by the racism virus. These include the
legal system, the prison system, economic systems,
political systems, and educational systems. And
racism is like a bit of poison in the water tank.
You can't drink a single cup and expect it not
to be tainted. So I want to end with this. James
1, 27. Religion that God our Father accepts as
pure and faultless is this. One, to look after
orphans and widows in their distress, and two,
to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
While boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen, our
society has become tainted. It is tainted. And
the tainter in chief continues to pour poison
in our national water well. He is polluting the
world.