It would take me a long time to understand how systems inflict pain and hardship in people’s lives and to learn that being kind in an unjust system is not enough.

Sir, — Whether women are the equals of men has been endlessly debated; whether they have souls has been a moot point; but can it be too much to ask [for a definitive acknowledgement that...

The tourists had money and we needed it; they only asked in return to be lied to and deceived and told that single most important thing, that they were safe, that their sense of security—national,...

These questions are difficult. The answers are not obvious, and so there should be some pausing, some angst, some honest uncertainty as people struggle to decide the best course of action. But I see none...

It means the most dark and terrible of all human actions—talking to a man. In fact, I know of nothing more difficult than really talking to the poor men we meet.” (pp. 13-14)

A church that is committed to Christian Community Development sees not only the soul of a person as significant but also his or her whole life on Earth. It is being completely pro-life for a...

Rules of taste enforce structures of power.

The ugliest thing in America is greed, the lust for power and domination, the lunatic ideology of perpetual Growth – with a capital G. ‘Progress’ in our nation has for too long been confused with...

This Revolution is genuine because it was born from the same womb that always gives birth to massive social upheavals – the womb of intolerable conditions and unendurable situations.

Let’s make justice a process, not an afterthought

It takes a common thug to commit injustice, but it takes an exceptional thug to call it “social justice”.

Julia supposed that there was also a difference in perspective: ‘The practical level was another level down [in 1960s social movements] and not so interesting. I don’t know much about organizing, but I feel as...

There is one kind of prison where the man is behind bars, and everything he desires is outside; and there is another kind where the things are behind the bars, and the man is outside.

The more ardently I see humanity as a glorious abstract that must conform to my ideal of how the world should be, the harder it is for me to love the person on the other...

Physicians, patients, and ethicists must also understand that acknowledging abuse and encouraging African Americans to participate in research are compatible goals. History and today’s deplorable African American health profile tell us clearly that black Americans...

Reflective learning provokes critical thinking, enabling us to pose relevant questions, revealing the profound oceans of ignorance that surround even the most learned scholars in our fields of modern knowledge, invoking us to be active...

Many of the seminal social issues of our time – poverty, lack of education, human trafficking, war and torture, domestic abuse – can track their way to our theology of, or beliefs about, women, which...

Remember that the happiest people are not those getting more, but those giving more.

We who engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of tension. We merely bring to the surface hidden tension that is already alive

The act of claiming an identity can be transformational. It can provide healing and empowerment. It can weld solidarity within a community. And, perhaps most importantly, it can diminish power from an oppressor, a dominant...

The whiteness celebrated in Paris is Burning is not just any old brand of whiteness but rather that brutal imperial ruling-class capitalist patriarchal whiteness that presents itself -its way of life- as the only meaningful...

Power in the hands of the reformer is no less potentially corrupting than in the hands of the oppressor.

Our current contempt for poverty stems from information overload–this is the enabler—our over education as privileged people– perhaps the real culprit–and our secret assurance that we ourselves owe no one anything beyond the exhausting daily...

There is no doubt that the biblical concept of the Kingdom calls for a ministry to the suffering, the imprisoned, the oppressed, the hungry and whomever is dehumanized by an unjust society. In abstract, almost...

Give a man a teacher and he’ll learn many a thing.Teach a man to learnand he’ll learn from everything.

But now what? Why, now comes my master, takes me right away from my work, and my friends, and all I like, and grinds me down into the very dirt! And why? Because, he says,...

jungle” as our warriors meet and join the battle drum that calls for unity in the struggle for breaking the chains of modern slavery—like the butterflies flying the skies and the birds over the seas,...

What’s the story here, Karl?’ Kevin asked.’Hard as it is to believe, these people are slaves,’ Karl explained.’Slaves?’ I asked skeptically.’Well, you might not call them that but they are virtual slaves. They don’t receive...

Crack had a social logic to it, a specific kind of reasoning that drew from a vast well of common experience for its symbolic resonance. Crack stood for pain and power, chaos and order, the...

Communism forgets that life is individual. Capitalism forgets that life is social, and the kingdom of brotherhood is found neither in the thesis of communism nor the antithesis of capitalism but in a higher synthesis....

Dignity is a bridge.It needs two sides that, being different, distinct and distant become one in the bridgewithout ceasing to be different and distinct, but ceasing already to be distant.

An educator should consider that he has failed in his job if he has not succeeded in instilling some trace of a divine dissatisfaction with our miserable social environment.

We live in a system that espouses merit, equality, and a level playing field, but exalts those with wealth, power, and celebrity, however gained.

The ends you serve that are selfish will take you no further than yourself but the ends you serve that are for all, in common, will take you into eternity.

Tolerance is the essential starting point for compassion. That’s why it is so emphasized in our society right now. In a world full of discrimination, prejudice, and marginalization, people need to be taught to tolerate...

Give a man a fish shop and he’ll flounder.Teach a man to manage a fish shop, and he’ll learn to fill it!

In the unceasing ebb and flow of justice and oppression we must all dig channels as best we may, that at the propitious moment somewhat of the swelling tide may be conducted to the barren...

If you can do nothing else, do whatever is in your power to make the people in your life feel completely unashamed of who they are.

When we came out of the cookhouse, we found the boy’s father, the Indian man who had been grazing the horses in the pasture, waiting for us. He wanted someone to tell his troubles to....

I cannot say whether things will get better if we change; what I can say is that they must change if they are to get better.

No matter how much respect, no matter how much recognition whites show towards me…as long as that same respect and recognition isn’t shown towards everyone of our people in this country–it doesn’t exist for me.

To consume the best for yourself and give the crumbs to God is blasphemy. A heart that truly worships is a heart that gives its best to God in time and substance. A heart that...

We have a choice. We can embrace our humanness, which means embracing our broken natures and the compassion that remains our best hope for healing. Or we can deny our brokenness, forswear compassion, and, as...

When it’s better for everyone, it’s better for everyone.

The point is not that Jesus was a good guy who accepted everybody, and thus we should do the same (though that would be good). Rather, his teachings and behavior reflect an alternative social vision....

If you look at the science that describes what is happening on earth today and aren’t pessimistic, you don’t have the correct data. If you meet people in this unnamed movement and aren’t optimistic, you...

Give a man a fishand he’ll eat for a day.Give a WOMAN a fish and she’ll feed the whole family for a week!

Had I glimpsed just a little of the suffering I would witness and the heartbreak I would endure, I would have fled in the other direction…But I could not foresee any of these things…And many...

The words we choose can build communities, reunite loved ones, and inspire others. They can be a catalyst for change. However, our words also have the power to destroy and divide: they can start a...

We have got some very big problems confronting us and let us not make any mistake about it, human history in the future is fraught with tragedy … It’s only through people making a stand...