As we continue to take steps individually and as a congregation towards understanding, confronting, and dismantling racial bias and systemic racism around us, among us, and within us, here is one thing to watch, one place to give and one action to take:

1. watch.     "A Time For Burning" 
Watch this 1966 documentary film that follows the story of Augustana Lutheran Church in Omaha, Nebraska. Click here to find this film on YouTube. 

2. give.        Holy Trinity Lutheran Church // Minneapolis, MN 
Donate to support the ongoing ministry of this ELCA congregation in South Minneapolis who is serving the immediate needs of its community that was surrounded by the uprising after George Floyd’s murder. Click here for their donation site through "GiveMN."

3. do.          Support a local Black-owned business 
Minneapolis and St. Paul are blessed to have many Minority- and Black-owned businesses to choose from. Click here for one listing of such buisnesses, this one provided by KARE-11 news. 

This congregation has committed itself to becoming anti-racist, confronting white privilege and systemic injustice within us and around us. This week, we lift up one thing to read, one place you can donate, and one concrete action you can take in this effort. You’ll notice a relationship between these three things—they’re connected to the larger work of our denomination, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The links to each of these can be found on the home page of our website, as well as in the bulletin for this morning.

• One thing you can read: The ELCA’s Declaration to People of African Descent. We know that racial justice has more than just a black/white component to it, but one step our mostly white church body has taken is to recognize the ways we have perpetuated the oppression of black folks among us. This document calls our attention to this and helps define the next steps forward. Read it here. 
• One place you can donate: Calvary Lutheran Church, at 39th and Chicago in Minneapolis, just a block away from where George Floyd was murdered on Memorial Day. This congregation has a history of deep engagement with their neighborhood, and that has intensified in the weeks following Mr. Floyd’s death and the uprising and demonstrations that followed. Pastor Hans Lee and others in  the congregation have a daily presence on their sidewalk, and their food shelf has never been busier. Visit their website to find out how you can support their ministry. 
• One concrete action you can take this week is to consider signing the ELCA’s Anti-racism pledge, which simply says “I commit to study, prayer and action to become an anti-racist individual in an anti-racist church.” While you're there, check out more resources, ideas, and actions on the ELCA racial justice page.

As we continue our commitment to on-going Anti-Racism work, individually and as a congregation, here is one thing you can read this week, one place you can donate or give this week, and one concrete action you can take this week:

1. read. White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack 
   by Peggy McIntosh. Find out more at racialequitytools.org/resourcefiles/mcintosh.pdf
   
   
2. give. Bethlehem Lutheran Church-in-the-Midway, Saint Paul
   Accepting monetary donations, groceries and household items. Find out more at https://bethlehem-midway.org 
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3.  do. Join a CtK small group. A group will be discussing Dialogue on Race Mondays at 7 pm, beginning July 13th . Contact Pr Peter ([email protected]) to sign up.

As we continue to commit ourselves as a congregation to be actively anti-racist, confronting white privilege and systemic violence, we want to lift up examples each week of one thing to read, one place to donate, and one concrete action to take. Here are this week's suggestions:

• One thing you can read: “White Debt,” by Eula Biss. This author was also featured recently on the radio show and podcast “On Being” with Krista Tippet. Click here for the article.  Click here for the "On Being" podcast.
• One place you can donate: CANDO, the central avenue neighborhood development organization. This neighborhood includes the site where George Floyd was murdered on Memorial Day, and this non-profit organization serves both as steward of that memorial site and community educator for those who wish to engage in acts of allyship and solidarity. Click here for more information or to make a donation. 
• One concrete action you can take this week is to write to your representatives on local, state, and national levels about anti-racist legislation currently under consideration, such as the “Justice in Policing Act of 2020.” To locate addresses for your individual representatives click here.  

There is so much to do in our work of anti-racism, and we know it can be overwhelming. We hope that providing these specific items each week can help us find a place to begin that work.