Meditation Monday: A Sign of Hope in the Struggle for Racial Justice

Especially since the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police three weeks ago, expressions of pain, grief, and anger at ongoing acts and systems of racial injustice have taken place throughout the country and around the world. In Richmond, VA protests focused on Monument Avenue where statues of Confederate generals and leaders have stood for over 100 years. They were erected not immediately after the Civil War but at a time when the injustice of Jim Crow racial segregation was being developed and deepened into a harsh legal system. The statues are symbols of both the oppression of slavery supported by the Confederacy and the oppressive Jim Crow laws. Virginia Governor Ralph Northam recently announced that the statue of Robert E. Lee, the largest and most impressive of the statues and the only one standing on state property instead of city property, would be taken down. While waiting for that to happen, the monument is the scene of ongoing protests and gatherings of people committed to the struggle for racial justice.

I was in Richmond on Saturday and planned to stop at the Lee monument to take some pictures. What I found was a large crowd in the middle of a worship service. I was inspired and moved to see a gospel group standing on the base of the statue singing songs of praise and freedom. Just a few weeks ago, this scene would not have been imaginable. It was a sign of hope amid the pain, grief, and anger of these days. The struggle goes on, but thanks be to God for signs of hope that remind us of the deep connection between faith and justice for follower’s of Jesus. Take a minute to watch the video below to get a feel for that sign of hope at the Lee Monument.