From “US: The Resurrection of American Terror” by Rev. Kenneth W. Wheeler Jim Crow meant that your movements as a Black person were restricted. You were not free to travel in any white community after dusk. It also meant that you had to observe certain social norms that had become institutionalized. You had to step […]
To be born into a place where you will experience trauma Read More »
From “US: The Resurrection of American Terror” by Rev. Kenneth W. Wheeler I would hear her praying for me, her only son, her only child. I would hear her talking to God about me. Lord, keep him in your care. Throw your loving arms around him and protect him. Keep him from all hurt, and
There must be two different Gods Read More »
From “US: The Resurrection of American Terror” by Rev. Kenneth W. Wheeler Segregation under the Jim Crow laws was not just about separating the races. It ultimately was about instilling self-hatred and trying to separate Black people from their own humanity. This was what those signs in public places were about. It was what riding
Instilling self-hatred Read More »
From “US: The Resurrection of American Terror” by Rev. Kenneth W. Wheeler My father was a proud Black man but he was broken by Jim Crow. I remember standing in the Billups gas station with him one hot afternoon. He went into the station to buy a package of Camel cigarettes. That was the brand
The stance of silence was not simply about fear but about survival Read More »
From “US: The Resurrection of American Terror” by Rev. Kenneth W. Wheeler Mississippi is a place of terror if you are Black, Terror reigns in every corner of the state. There are countless stories of Blacks who have been brutalized and killed for no reason other than the color of their skin. In 1940, Willie
Mississippi was the crown jewel of white supremacy Read More »
From “US: The Resurrection of American Terror” by Rev. Kenneth W. Wheeler As a Black person and as one who embraces the Christian faith, I have thought about the racial dynamics in this country a great deal. I continue to think about them because I am impacted by them every day. I am pained by
We are tired of an oppression that is not our doing Read More »
From “US: The Resurrection of American Terror” by Rev. Kenneth W. Wheeler After every Racial Awareness Sunday, I would go back to my community on the far northwest side of Milwaukee. And the white members would return to their lives, where they would rarely come in contact with a person of color. In their everyday
