The Facing Racism at
Saint Catherine and Saint Sebastian Parishes
Co-chairs: Margaret Ward (margaretward1220@gmail.com) and Michelle Hansen
Social media: Chelsea Duffy (media@saintsebs.org)
Staff: Margaret Lee (mlee@saintsebs.org) and Carole Poth (cpoth@saintcatherine.org)
Download the parishes’ Stand Against Racism poster.
Committee Updates
Kneel for Nine — The first Saturday of the month is slated as our Facing Racism Social Action group’s participation in the Kneel for Nine on Hawley and Vliet. The vigil occurs every day from 5:30-5:39 p.m. to take a knee (or stand) to show our commitment to racial justice.
Facing Racism Resources
Smithsonian Magazine: 158 Resources to Understand Racism in America
National Catholic Reporter: Anti-Racism Reading List
Parade Magazine: Anti-Racism Starter Pack
New York Times: Explaining Racism to Your Kids
Medium: 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice by Corinne Shutack
Click HERE for a spreadsheet of “75 Things” with columns that show the different types of actions. The article is a couple of years old, so the spreadsheet may need updating. If you have any updates, please let me know. Also, let me know if you have a unique action that you are doing and would like to add it to the spreadsheet. Contact: Carole Poth at cpoth@saintcatherine.org.
Also, you may want to check out Guidelines for Being Strong White Allies, by Paul Kivel or this inspirational video called March, March.
Racial Justice and the Catholic Church
Archdiocese of Milwaukee Anti-Racism Resources
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops: Combatting Racism
From an article from Bryan Massingale in the National Catholic Register.
What are white people to do?
- Understand the difference between being uncomfortable and being threatened.
- Sit in the discomfort this hard truth brings.
- Admit your ignorance and do something about it.
- Have the courage to confront your family and friends.
- Be “unconditionally pro-life.”
- Pray.
Come, Holy Spirit! Fill the hearts of your faithful. Enkindle within us the fire of your love. Come, Holy Spirit! Breathe into us a fiery passion for justice. Especially for those who have the breath of life crushed from them. Amen.
Catholic Herald: Catholic Leaders: Floyd Tragedy a ‘Wake-Up Call’. Fr. Peter Patrick tells of his experience with racial profiling and a follow-up article on Where Do We Go from Here.