Overcome racism
Collaborate to overcome racism
By George Arende
A forum on racism, discrimination, Afrophobia and xenophobia took place in September at the Ecumenical Centre to listen to the experience of people of African descent in the United States. It was organized by World Council of Churches in coordination with the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA (NCCC) to learn, acknowledge and reaffirm the role of faith communities as agents of transformative justice in the face of racial injustice.
While welcoming the participants attending the session, WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit lamented that racism and discrimination is a “sad reality” for many in the United States.
He noted the existing connection between polarization, division, nationalism and racism. “The Church finds itself between two poles: [one that has] a strong willingness to divide, polarize, to discriminate and [another] with momentum of strong witness for right, justice of saying no,” he said.
He called upon the churches to use the “language of faith” and not to “demonize others” for change.
The chairperson of the UN Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, a group established in 2002 and mandated by the Commission on Human Rights and Human Rights Council to study the problems of racial discrimination faced by people of African descent living in diaspora, called on “collaborative efforts” in combating evil.
The full video clip of the session is available here on youtube