So…we had our meeting. It was lovely. My memory of it has been a steady encouragement to me as I hear news of a Republican leader heading to jail after assuring David Brooks that we should expect “unrestricted narrative warfare” in the days to come. There’s also Project 2025 to think about.
But enough about that. On my way to the meeting, I stumbled upon the liturgy in the image above. It proved a little bit triggering to a person or two I know personally and still hear from on Instagram, but I find it righteous. Yes, Tennessee is a memory law state for now. But Second Presbyterian Church, just across from Lipscomb University, keeps at it.
The sight of the Anti-Racist Little Library was an emotional boost as I moseyed over to the Green Hills Library wondering who would show up. I haven’t received permission to say who all showed up. But there were lots of us. Most were older than me. Reader, I’m a 54-year-old white male.
My friend, Amy, kicked things off talking about her decision to read the complete works of James Baldwin and to do the work. She also discussed an event at the Belcourt I’ll have more to say about in a future post.
From there, I read a poem and opened things up. I asked everyone present to share an early memory of distinct awareness of a racial divide and a memory of a moment in which they experienced their own moral power. We kept at it for about two hours. I believe I can say we were all energized and made slightly more hopeful about the future.
Somewhere in the thick of it, I posed this question which I find myself voicing almost anytime I’m in front of a group of people: Am I responsible for the lies I let other people voice in my presence unchallenged?
Discussing the meeting, Sarah suggested I develop the habit of posting words under the heading: One Thing You Can Do. I think I’m going to do that at least once starting right now.
But I’m actually going to describe a few things you can do. I invite you to pick one or do all of them.
Read the poem we read aloud to yourself or in the presence of others. Here it is.
Ask someone you know to share an early memory of distinct awareness of a racial divide and a memory of a moment in which they experienced their own moral power. If you’re going to ask them to do this, you should probably share those two memories yourself. Not that I make the rules.
Ask someone this question: Are we responsible for the lies we let other people voice in our presence unchallenged?
Thanks for tuning in, everyone. Beware the unrestricted narrative warfare a-foot all around us. Stay safe.
I was there and several of my buds. All older than you, David, and of the female persuasion. We all said the meeting was empowering and intimate and we need to meet again. Today while we were watching Rev. Lawson's funeral in LA online, there were apparently some white supremacists in Nashville, mostly ignored as we listened to friends and family of Rev. Lawson tell about his life-long work for all of us humans. We can learn about nonviolent action and treat ourselves kindly.
I’m just now seeing this and I’m sorry I missed the meeting! I just moved to Green Hills and that library has been a safe space for me the past few months. I would have loved to hear from you and others there. I’ll try and stay tuned for the future.