Suggested Reading: Jim Wallis, America’s Original Sin
Fans of The Wire will recall D’Angelo Barksdale yelling at Stringer Bell, “Where’s Wallace???” Had the question been directed to minister and founder of Sojourners Jim Wallis—"Where’s Wallis?”—the answer would be “dang near everywhere.” Jim Wallis’s ministry has placed him nearly every hotspot for the past six decades, and he has some stories to tell.
Personal memoirs are a fantastic way to learn how racism affects others, but it’s also necessary to learn the longer histories if you’re to deepen your understanding of the nation’s sordid story. Wallis does a nice job of weaving together the two. The Detroit native began his journey to a greater understanding of race matters when he was a college student at Michigan State hosting conversations on the issues that were rocking the nation in his dorm room.
Wallis intended America’s Original Sin to be a primer, so it’s a readable intro, albeit a troubling one, through American history. From the outset, Wallis grounds his work in taking personal responsibility, saying that if you benefit from white privilege, then it means you have “white responsibility.” Part of this means, you have to do some work by educating yourself before diving into conversations for which you are unprepared. Wallis sees this as an act of hospitality, “so as to not put the whole burden of their learning on their colleagues and friends of color.”
Wallis utilizes themes recognizable to evangelicals across the spectrum—sin, repentance, salvation, forgiveness—even though he is mainly associated with the Religious Left. Wallis seems to understand the language and constructs of most American Christians, making his work accessible to readers. He does this by introducing what might be new terms to some readers by putting them into theological language. For example, on the term whiteness, Wallis says, “Whiteness is not just an ideology; it is also an idol. For people of faith, this is not just a political issue but a religious one as well. Idols separate us from God, and the idolatry of “whiteness” has separated white people from God.”
Three favorite beats:
(1) Wallis has many stories, perhaps none more powerful than his trip to Ferguson, Missouri, in the wake of Michael Brown’s death. Wallis’s description of entering into a place filled with anger and grief—particularly as a white minister in his mid-sixties—is a poignant narration of being an outsider while attempting work for justice and healing.
(2) Wallis names racism to be a sin over and over again, and the reader is challenged implicitly to search their own actions and thoughts for corners where they’ve allowed racism to hide. The standard for Christians is not to be satisfied with just a little bit of prejudice; the standard is to work toward eliminating all forms of racism from one’s life.
(3) For white audiences unfamiliar with “the talk” many parents of color must have with their children if they are ever pulled over by police officers, I’ll give you a second to Google it. Wallis suggests white families follow suit with a talk of their own: A discussion about what kind of America they want for all families, regardless of color, and then, how to take action-steps toward that vision. It requires work, in particular seeking out resources to increase our understanding of our national history—our original sin of racism—and acting upon those lessons.
Who should read this?
Beginners aka White people who don’t know a thing. (No judgment!) People of faith who want to put race matters into conversation with Christianity. Readers who like many stories interspersed with history, contemporary politics, calls to action.
Book/site link: Jim Wallis/Sojo--America's Original Sin
(© 2020, Justin Phillips)