This summer, we have been experiencing a hopeful sea change in recognizing the continued oppression of people of color in America because of white supremacy. This week, we celebrate Tuesday’s primary election where many Black women won their primaries and Missouri voted to expand Medicaid coverage.
As LGBTQ people of faith, we know that lasting change comes from sustained effort, sacrifice, and optimistic hope. We bring that hope with us, as we look toward continuing our church’s legacy of justice by digging in deeper in fighting systemic racism.
At the end of July, some in our church were involved in a discussion on Queering Racial Justice featuring young panelists from around St. Louis in response to Milwaukee 53206. This powerful film highlights three families affected by mass incarceration in America’s city with the highest rate of incarceration per capita, where 62% of adult Black men are currently in prison or have served time.
Our conversation contextualized the problem of mass incarceration for St. Louis, creating urgency over the need for us as LGBTQ folks to get involved with addressing the school-to-prison pipeline. In Missouri, according to the Prison Policy Initiative, the incarceration rate has risen since 1978, around 6 times more people are incarcerated now. This increase disproportionately affects black people as 2,237 per 100,000 black people are incarcerated in Missouri compared to 495 per 100,000 white people.
In coming months, we will continue to offer opportunities for you to be a part of the solution to end mass incarceration and address racism in all forms. For now, we invite you to click this link and watch the conversation. Let us know what comes to mind as you listen.
Thank you to Odyssey Impact for the opportunity to screen and discuss this important film.