The 'path to becoming anti-racist''

How does it feel to be a black Catholic today? 

Not many Roman Catholics - a majority of whom are white - can speak to this experience in the Diocese of Albany. Yet many want to know how the Church and fellow Catholics, who are called to love our brothers and sisters, can be more inclusive to people of color. 

These difficult and sometimes uncomfortable topics were the centerpiece of the webinar, “Opening Wide Our Hearts: Our Faith Speaks to Racism,” on Sept. 29. Led by Dr. Kim R. Harris, assistant professor of African American Thought and Practice in the Department of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University, and sponsored by the diocesan Vicariate for Catholic Faith Formation and Education, the presentation reflected on the pastoral letter “Open Wide Our Hearts” and discussed a plan of action for Catholics to better our Church for all. 

“We need to find ways to reach across those lines that might hold us apart from each other,” Harris said to the 80 participants via Google Zoom. “Especially for white brothers and sisters who are gathered here today, we need to find ways to reach across and say, ‘Yes I see you, I hear you. Yes, your experiences are different than me.’ ”

Harris’ calm voice and inviting smile was no stranger to some of the webinar’s participants, as she has spent many years in the Albany Diocese living in Schoharie County. The professor packed her presentation with knowledge on how racism still infects our nation and our church, how the U.S. Bishops are calling us to “open our minds and hearts to Christ’s love for all people,” and answered questions about bettering ourselves and our parish settings to welcome marginalized groups.

And, of course, it wouldn’t be a proper presentation from Harris without some singing. Harris helped compose the “Welcome Table: A Mass of Spirituals,” along with M. Roger Holland II, and teaches, records and travels the nation, performing concerts, lecturing on the music of African American freedom traditions, and leading music in a variety of liturgical settings. The webinar began with her soulfully singing the Gospel song, “There is a balm in Gilead.”

Harris kicked off the discussion with the struggles felt by black Catholics in the Church: “There are so many stories of (black) people who are not welcoming into the Church, not because of a lack of vocations, but a lack of welcoming. … There are people who live near us, there are people who go to our parish, who have had such a different kind of experience than us.” This lack of exposure leads to a lack of understanding and can divide us. 

So how then can white or privileged Catholics come to understand the plight of black Catholics or people of color? Harris suggested the “path to becoming anti-racist” has three different zones: it starts in the fear zone (choosing to be comfortable rather than asking hard questions), goes to the learning zone (recognizing racism is a current issue and seeking out education on it) and ends in the growth zone (to actively speak out against racism.) 

To work through the learning zone, Harris suggested trying some activities that fall into either the low, medium or high-risk category. 

“Low risk might be reading a book or watching a movie. There are so many resources out there to hear the experiences of people different from you,” she said. “Medium risk, after you have done some educating of yourself, maybe you want to reach out to some people of color and say, I have some questions.”

Harris did stop here to warn about this action, adding that many black people may be exhausted with this responsibility of explaining their experiences to others. “It is worth taking the time,” she said, “but if someone says, ‘I’m just tired,’ you’ll know why.” 

It was suggested that priests can write homilies discussing racism, and parish groups can hold book clubs to educate people on the topic. It can be an uncomfortable path to walk, but Harris noted it is a path we never walk alone.

“I feel vulnerable about my own knowledge gaps, about my own biases. We all have to feel that at a time,” she said, but as we navigate this path “know that Jesus is walking right along with us.”