The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) condemns the heinous act of pure hatred that took the lives of three innocent people in Jacksonville, Fla., on Saturday, August 26, 2023. Our prayers are with the families of Anolt “AJ” Laguerre Jr., Jerrald De’Shaun Gallion, and Angela Michelle Carr, as they mourn their loved ones.
Unfortunately, the murder of innocent people while they are conducting simple daily routines — grocery shopping, going to the movies, attending worship services, sitting in a classroom, and other normal activities — is now commonplace in America. Nevertheless, the normalization of hate fueled acts is abhorrent.
We must never underestimate or ignore the threat posed to all Americans, especially Black Americans and other people of color, by the prevalence of white supremacy and the ease with which supremacists and other perpetrators of hate can access weapons designed to kill as quickly, efficiently, and destructively as possible.
“Racism is not just an issue for black and brown people,” says NCC President and General Secretary Bishop Vashti McKenzie. “We need to enact and enforce legislation that targets systemic racism. Change happens when we become allies working together for change instead of working on each other.”
At its May 2023 meeting, the NCC Governing Board adopted a resolution calling for a “ban on all assault weapons and other weapons of war that have infiltrated our communities.” NCC maintains its demand that Congress take action to protect lives, especially those in marginalized communities that are most at risk from the volatile combination of racially motivated violent extremism and easily accessible, military grade tools of death.
“We are in a state of emergency,” says Bishop Teresa Snorton, Chair of NCC’s Governing Board. “We call on all elected officials at the highest levels to do what is necessary to protect all citizens from these acts of domestic terrorism.”
NCC calls on all people of good will to become more aware of how racist acts against humanity and the suffering they cause show up in neighborhoods and communities across our nation, and then work assiduously towards the equality and dignity of all people.
Press Statements
National Council of Churches at the 60th Commemoration of the March on Washington
Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie among National Faith Leaders Speaking
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) is thrilled to announce that Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, President/General Secretary of the ecumenical body, will be speaking at the upcoming 60th Commemoration of the March on Washington this Saturday, August 26, 2023, between 9-9:15 a.m. The program is from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at the Lincoln Memorial and the March to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial begins at 1:00 p.m.
“NCC’s presence and participation in this momentous occasion reflects our unwavering commitment to the pursuit of equality, justice, and dignity for all,” said Bishop Teresa Snorton, Chair of NCC’s Governing Board. “For the past 73 years NCC communions have played a vital role in advancing the cause of civil rights and promoting healing, reconciliation, and unity among diverse communities.”
NCC played a major role in organizing and participating in the original historic march on August 28, 1963. Many of NCC’s communion leaders marched that day with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. including Jon Regier, head of the Division of Christian Life and Mission.
Anna Arnold Hedgeman, a civil rights leader and NCC commission member, was the only woman on the original organizing committee for the March. She strategized to get at least one woman speaking on the podium that day and it turned out to be the NAACP’s Daisy Bates.
The 60th Commemoration of the march holds great significance for Bishop McKenzie as she marched in the historic 1963 march as a teenager. “My parents retrieved me from summer camp in southern Maryland to attend the march with other cousins and family members,” said Bishop McKenzie. “The significance of the long hot day of speeches wasn’t fully realized until later in life as a student activist in college.”
In 2013, along with former Chairman of NCC’s Governing Board, Bishop W. Darin Moore, Bishop McKenzie prayed one of the opening prayers of the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington.
“At the heart of our Christian faith and the mission of the NCC is a love-compelling commitment to justice that won’t allow us to be silent in the face of poverty, inequality, oppression, and systems that devalue our divine image. Ours is a legacy of prophetic witness that continues to cry out for liberation, reparation, and equality,” said Bishop W. Darin Moore, the Presiding Prelate for the Mid-Atlantic Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, and a member of NCC’s Governing Board.
NCC calls upon it’s constituency of 100,000 congregations and the nation to come together, united in purpose, to honor the past, engage with the present challenges, and actively work towards a future where justice and equality prevail. Register! March! Move forward!
For more information about the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, “Not a Commemoration, A Continuation,” and how to register, click here.
National Council of Churches Vehemently Opposes Supreme Court Ruling on Affirmative Action in College Admissions
For I, the Lord, love justice,
I hate robbery and wrongdoing; [a]
I will faithfully give them their recompense,
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
Isaiah 61:8, NRSVUE
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA vehemently opposes the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Students for Fair Admissions v President and Fellows of Harvard College to eliminate the consideration of race and ethnicity from the college admissions process. The decision reverses decades of legal precedent and progress in providing equitable access to higher education for Black Americans and other racial groups who have endured the shackles of structural and systemic discrimination for centuries.
Affirmative action is a reparative attempt to undo the lasting effects of slavery, segregation, and systemic discrimination against Black people in education and other aspects of American society. Since the 1960s, colleges and universities have developed programs to improve access to higher education for racial minority groups to reflect the full strength and diversity of the United States. Affirmative action considers an applicant’s racial background, including financial and other hardships due to systemic racism, as one of several factors in the college admissions process when evaluating a qualified pool of applicants.
It is short-sighted, shameful, and downright immoral for American institutions to deny the history and impact of racism and discrimination. Opposition to affirmative action programs in higher education is evidence of how deeply entrenched white supremacy is in our society and how much more work is needed to undo and end racial injustice.
“Refusing to remedy the wrongs of the past does not erase them. It only exacerbates and magnifies the negative effects they have had. Unfortunately, the nation and some of our most vulnerable citizens will pay the price for this egregious ruling,” said Bishop Teresa Jefferson-Snorton, Chair of NCC’s Governing Board.
While progress has been made to close the racial gap in education, disparities remain in many institutions of higher education. It is tone deaf to act as though racism is not still a factor in American life, despite the realities of ongoing structural and systemic racial barriers that plague our society. All God’s people, regardless of their race, should have not only equal but equitable opportunity to thrive and realize their full potential.
“Race has been a factor in making employment, housing, banking, health care and education decisions for centuries in America. The decision by the Supreme Court adds to the pain of marginalized people and pits one group against the other, vying for a few spaces in certain institutions of higher learning. When our colleges, corporations, communities, and country make space for people of diverse backgrounds and experiences to participate fully, it enriches all our lives. This decision undermines ‘liberty and justice for all’ in the face of historical discrimination and rising racism,” said NCC President and General Secretary Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie.
Today, we reaffirm the commitment made by the National Council of Churches in 1997 to encourage our member denominations and ecumenical agencies to continue support of and advocacy for effective affirmative action programs, statutes, policies, and practices; to speak out against retrogressive legislative and other attempts to rescind or weaken affirmative action statutes on municipal, state, or federal levels; to align themselves with others of good will to defeat anti-affirmative action initiatives constructed to turn back the clock; and to encourage members to exercise their constitutional and civil responsibilities fully in helping to defeat these and other assaults on productive affirmative action programs.
We must remain steadfast about the realities of racism and be willing to make changes to overcome new challenges that emerge as we strive to become the Beloved Community.
The Debt Ceiling Compromise Does Not Go Far Enough to Protect Vulnerable People
The House has passed and the Senate is preparing to vote on an agreement between President Biden and House leadership to raise the debt ceiling to pay America’s bills to avert a global financial crisis by June 5, 2023. The agreement is a considerable improvement from the previous threats to cut support from those who need it the most. However, it still falls short of the legislation that the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA had hoped for, one that reflects the full potential of America, and upholds the obligation that we as Christians have to care for the most vulnerable in society—those whom Jesus had in mind when he emphatically said, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me (Matthew 25:40 NRSVUE).”
The proposed compromise denies the IRS vital funding it needs to improve its ability to hold wealthy people who defraud the system accountable while weakening support systems of those who need help. NCC maintains that any legislation to raise the debt ceiling should not have extra conditions or cuts. We must honor the Imago Dei in each human being and preserve the integrity of safety net programs designed to help those in need.
In the weeks leading to this critical moment in our nation’s history, we bore witness to the worst aspects of partisan politics. Inundated by the disgraceful rhetoric that cast blame on the poor and defenseless, America was exposed to political gamesmanship that brought us to the brink of financial catastrophe not seen in 247 years. Congress must not hold the American people hostage in future debt ceiling debates. There should be no cuts to safety-net programs that provide food, health care, and housing for those in need to raise the debt ceiling, nor should burdensome eligibility requirements, such as time limits, be considered in debt ceiling legislation.
Congress jeopardized the lives of hundreds of millions of people—including families, children, seniors, and veterans—at risk of going hungry, losing access to healthcare, and foreclosing on their homes. The American people deserve better than this display of political maneuvering and toxic polarization.
NCC is committed to continue to hold Congress accountable for any future cuts to these essential programs.
NCC General Secretary/President Featured Speaker at National Prayer Breakfast
On Thursday, February 2, 2023, Interim President and General Secretary Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie served as one of two keynote speakers for the National Prayer Breakfast held at the Capitol. In attendance were President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and many other members of Congress.
Drawing from the familiar parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10), Bishop McKenzie challenged attendees to consider the possibility that the text was not focused on who is our neighbor, but rather, on how to be a good neighbor. Bishop McKenzie challenged those in attendance to look for opportunities to embrace the love, mercy, and compassion Jesus demonstrates throughout Scripture, and to look toward the humanity of others. “Could it be that he saw the man’s humanity? When he saw the man’s humanity, he saw his own. Maybe we need to see our own humanity and see the humanity of others,” she said.
Immediately following the event, the President and several members of Congress expressed their appreciation to Bishop McKenzie for offering a new perspective on the familiar passage.
The breakfast was broadcast live on C-SPAN. Click here to watch Bishop McKenzie’s presentation on their website.
NCC Praises the Signing of the Emmett Till Antilynching Act Into Law
“There are six things that the Lord hates,
seven that are an abomination to him:
haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,
a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that hurry to run to evil,
a lying witness who testifies falsely,
and one who sows discord in a family.”
Proverbs 6:16-19 NRSVue
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) extols the signing of the Emmett Till Antilynching Act by President Joe Biden on March 29, 2022. The long-overdue Act has made lynching a federal hate crime offense. The bill imposes criminal penalties ranging from a fine to up to 30 years in prison for anyone who conspires to commit “a hate crime offense that results in death or serious bodily injury or that includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill.”
The Act’s namesake, Emmett Till, was a 14-year-old boy when he was murdered in 1955 while visiting his relatives in Mississippi. He was kidnapped and beaten before his body was dumped in the Tallahatchie River. Historians note that even though clear evidence indicated two white men committed the crime, an all-white jury did not find the men guilty after only one hour of deliberation.
The NCC cannot ignore the fact that it took the United States over a century to outlaw lynching. The first antilynching legislation was introduced in 1900 by Rep. George Henry White of North Carolina, the only Black lawmaker at the time, but it never advanced out of committee. U.S. Representative Bobby L. Rush, a sponsor and negotiator of the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, noted that over 200 attempts have been made since that time to pass an antilynching law.
For America to take more than 100 years to make the terrorism of lynching illegal speaks volumes about the racism that permeates every part of our society. We cry out in anguish when we see the historical evidence that lynchings were public spectacles commemorated with photographs on postcards, often with white Protestant churchgoers participating, and recognize that the trauma and threat of these acts continue each day. Although the worst of the Jim Crow era of lynching has ended, we know current-day lynching still manifests itself in America. We witness the continuation of racial lynching in America when a Black teen, Travon Martin, is killed while walking home after buying iced tea and candy; a Black man, Ahmaud Arbery, is killed while jogging; and a Black woman, Rekia Boyd, is killed when socializing with friends in a park.
As part of our ACT Now to End Racism initiative, the NCC challenges our member denominations and our communities to join in truth-telling, leading to actions that right the wrongs, and, with God’s grace, bring healing and wholeness to all people and unity to the nation. We hail the signing of the Emmett Till Antilynching Act as a long-overdue recognition of the wrongs that were committed and a move toward a new era of truth-telling.
Although we cannot erase the terror that lynching has imposed on every Black American since the end of chattel slavery, we call on our churches to acknowledge this pain from our nation’s past while taking an active role in the process of healing and joining the fight for justice in every present instance of lynching. We pray that the unending strength from our faith in Christ will unify us in this struggle and bring us to victory over racial violence.
NCC Condemns Russia’s Massacre of Ukrainians
You shall not murder.
Exodus 20:13 NRSVue
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) cries out in anger and despair as we witness the brutal war in Ukraine. We condemn Russia for invading and murdering the people of Ukraine without provocation.
The horror of Russia’s missiles and bombs – that have destroyed and completely leveled entire cities and towns including homes, houses of worship, medical facilities, offices, and utilities – has now been compounded by the evidence of mass murder by the Russian army against Ukrainian civilians during the occupation of their communities. With the retreat of the Russian military from around Kyiv, evidence has mounted from credible sources of torture, rape, and mass graves filled with entire Ukrainian families killed and people bound while executed.
Lord, have mercy on all who have been brutally murdered and suffered through these attacks. Bring comfort to their remaining family, to their compatriots, and to all who are traumatized by this terror.
We continue to look on in horror at the assault on the Ukrainian people. As the war escalates, Ukrainians remain trapped without any means of survival or humanitarian corridors of escape due to Russia’s refusal to provide safe passage out of cities like Mariupol.
Lord, watch over those who are fleeing for their lives and bring them to safety.
The Russians who have committed these atrocities in Ukraine must be brought to justice. We call upon international bodies, including the United Nations, to investigate and punish war crimes committed by Russia. We commend the International Criminal Court for actively investigating the situation and beginning to collect evidence based on the referrals by many of its members to investigate any past and present allegations of war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide committed on any part of the territory of Ukraine by any person. The NCC asks the United States to fully support this investigation by the International Criminal Court.
In light of the continuing evidence of these human rights violations, we applaud the United Nations General Assembly for voting to suspend Russia from its Human Rights Council.
In addition, under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Article 7, when the acts being documented in Ukraine are proven to constitute crimes against humanity, in addition to Russia being held accountable, Russian individuals should also be held criminally responsible for “any prohibitive acts committed including murder, extermination, deportation or forcible transfer of population, torture, sexual violence, persecution against an identifiable group, and enforced disappearance of persons, and inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health.”
Lord, reign justice down upon us.
The NCC calls on President Joe Biden, all elected leaders, and all corporations to further the sanctions against the Russian government and all those who hold any power or influence within its government. Every possible effort must be taken to stop Russia from this continued massacre.
Lord, give us the moral courageto sacrifice our worldly goods to protect those who are under siege.
We cannot ignore the hypocrisy of the Russian lie about invading Ukraine to remove the Nazis. That any nation would use such a lie against any country, and in this case a country with a Jewish head of state, is abhorrent to us.
Lord, liberate us from evil and deception.
As Christians with interfaith partners, we know that all of our religions seek peace. We also lift up our joint efforts at peacemaking.
Lord, bring peace to Ukraine. Help us to find a way to create your kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
NCC Congratulates Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson on Her Confirmation to the Supreme Court
On this historic day, the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) commends the US Senate for confirming Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court of the United States. Since the formation of the Supreme Court in 1790, there has never been a Black woman on the court. This historic confirmation reflects the diversity of our nation and is long overdue.
Since 2018 when the NCC began the A.C.T. Now to End Racism initiative, we have been committed to eradicating the entrenched racism that grips the United States and paralyzes our ability to see every human being as equal. We hold that diversity on our benches is a necessity because it increases the trust we have in our courts and ensures everyone is represented in judicial decision-making.
“As the National Council of Churches continues our work to end racism and advance civil rights, we welcome Judge Jackson to the Supreme Court. With her undeniable credentials, we know she will bring the wisdom and experience needed at this time in our nation. Today is a day to celebrate our diversity as we work to become the Beloved Community we envision.” – Bishop Teresa Jefferson-Snorton, NCC Governing Board Chair and Presiding Bishop of the Fifth Episcopal District, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
