Racial Equity & Justice

Racial Equity & Justice — what we offer to readers on this topic...

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Connecting Spring Hope with Action

Connecting Spring Hope with Action

by | Apr 7, 2026 | ,

A few days ago, I joined other Christians in celebrating Easter. Whether through faith or nature or personal choices, spring is for many a time of hope. Depending of course on where you live, “spring” may begin at different times of the year. Today’s reflections are about the connection between hope and action. This post is in part a response to the challenge in last week’s piece Anchoring Joy by A. Adar Ayira on how joy is a different experience for Black people than white people.

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ANCHORING JOY

ANCHORING JOY

by | Mar 31, 2026 |

When U.S.-born Black people speak, write, commune on the topic of JOY with similar backgrounded strangers, family, and friends, our conversations share a common societal overlay: the magic of BLACK JOY; that Joy that is legacy and heritage born of pain, hope, struggle, and impossible odds. The conversation is bound in that context, as it is this history that Black people tend to reference and in which we tend to anchor our Joy.

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Rethinking Our Heroes on St. Patrick’s Day

Rethinking Our Heroes on St. Patrick’s Day

by | Mar 17, 2026 |

Today, many in the US and elsewhere pause to honor a Christian saint, St. Patrick. Faith is only part of the robust celebrations. People of all faiths and of none enjoy the parades, the celebrations, and the revelry that go with St. Patrick’s Day, a cultural as well as a religious holiday. My post today reflects on my experience of this special day and how it has helped shape my notions about heroes.

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Letters from Spain: A Humane Approach to Immigration

Letters from Spain: A Humane Approach to Immigration

by | Feb 17, 2026 |

Editor’s Note: This week’s post offers additional reflections from friend and retired nonprofit leader, Greg Cantori. Greg and his family moved from Baltimore to Spain in 2025. In this post, he shares how Spain is approaching immigration and “regularizing” people already there. While the country sizes are different; Spain’s approach offers a fresh possibility as our nation avoids the work of developing a just and win-win immigration policy and focuses on unwarranted punishment and cruel, fear-based enforcement of flawed policies.

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Why Pay Attention to Black History Month?  More Important than Ever!

Why Pay Attention to Black History Month?  More Important than Ever!

by | Feb 10, 2026 |

Editor’s Note: The repulsive and abhorrent attack of former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michele Obama posted last week on President Trump’s Truth Social account is just one more indication of the overt racism that is overtaking our nation today. The attacks by ICE, the efforts to manipulate the upcoming election and this obnoxious characterization of the Obamas is a national cry for help. Every attack on freedom and justice must be called out and rebutted. Paying attention to Black History and supporting DEI and school curriculums that tell the truth about America’s history are essential to the push back. 

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Listen, Pray, Learn, and Act: Discernment in Horrendous Times

Listen, Pray, Learn, and Act: Discernment in Horrendous Times

by | Feb 3, 2026 |

How do we respond faithfully to the out-of-control abuse of power and use of violence in Minnesota, our nation, and the world? The urge to turn off the news and ignore everything is strong. Yet history offers endless examples of how that reaction aids and encourages oppressors and perpetrators of injustice. To make it more complicated, many of us have friends and relatives who actually see the current situation and the attack on human rights as good for them—and for America.

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Really Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Really Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

by , | Jan 27, 2026 |

This is the eleventh year I have lived in Arizona for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Did you know that Arizona was the last state to start officially commemorating this federal holiday? I didn’t realize that states could decide not to recognize federal holidays, but evidently states’ rights apply here too. Their official reasoning at the time? “Why should the State of Arizona pay employees for a holiday of a non-national leader?”

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ICE Threats and Community in Action: One Story

ICE Threats and Community in Action: One Story

by | Jan 13, 2026 |

Donald Trump was elected to office in 2024, months after Tom and I relocated to Durham. We were immediately challenged to participate in activities resisting the administration’s abuse of power and racist policies. Our daughter lives locally and connected us with an amazing network of volunteers and organizations committed to preserving our democracy.

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About Tom Adams

Tom AdamsTom Adams writes and speaks on topics vital to the intersection of our personal lives with our community and global lives. He has for decades been engaged in and written about nonprofit leadership and transitions, spirituality and spiritual growth, how we each contribute to a more just and equitable world and recovery from addictions and the Twelve Step recovery movement.