mississippi burning| day 003

Mississippi burning

Anger, tears, sadness, broken heartedness, pain, disgust, passion, justice, and peace. These are just a few words I used to describe my experience while watching the film Mississippi Burning. The film was based around a murder investigation where two white civil rights activists and a black man from Jessup County, MS in 1964. The film weaved throughout the investigation were scenes of Klansmen who were guilty of murdering and severely beating the blacks of the city. The scenes of the oppression and hatred toward the black people were disgustingly real. Seeing such bigotry and racism while being exposed to the very same thing just hours earlier in Jackson made the film very real. I had a lot of riveting thoughts while the film went on.

What I felt was most interesting was the fact that the very same types of oppression could happen to our team here, today. There were several scenes were homemade gas bombs were tossed through the windows of black families homes, causing the houses to burst into flames and threatening the lives of the family. I became very real to me that some white supremacists could easily realize that there is a group of white Christians who are trying to “disrupt” our way of living and so we should go through bombs into their house and kill them. Even as I am writing this, the thought still passes through my mind and it makes me wonder how I am going to sleep tonite. How would you respond if you were in this situation? I realize now how I take so much for granted and how little I really do understand about social tension in America. I am beginning to realize how much of a racist I am and how horrible that truth is. It’s a destructive force that has been fueled by the screwed up American media and by the oppressive political forces in this country. At the same time, I realize it is only the love of Christ that can change me and change the people around me. I must be wiling to submit myself to the lordship of Christ and embracing the redeeming power of the cross. It was powerful and sad to see the cross, which is seen by so many of us as a symbol of unity, being used as a symbol of segregation and division. The burning crosses of the KKK used as symbols of hatred angered me. Throughout the film I really wanted to get a hold of these white Klansmen and kill them, but at the same time I realized that I was a part of the problem and in a lot of ways was no better than them. I think I just cloak my racism with “culture” and then think nothing of it.

One of the things that really irritated me about myself in this was that I don’t really know how to stop such a problem. How do we stop a problem that we’ve been embedded with in this country? It is a true question of cultural and societal engagement.

this is a poem I wrote about the issue of the KKK using the cross as a symbol of destruction rather than a symbol of unity.

The true Cross.

A house around me mourns in agony as a wooden cross blazes with flames.

A message of destruction is fashioned to a symbol that resembles peace.

This wood stands marred with flames as fear and tears tremble down this innocent face.

Screams and shrieks come from inside as God’s beloved children burn in pain.

Here there is no grace given by those who live with hate.

But this burning cross does not destroy.

Instead it makes them stronger.

Empowered, they fight for righteous justice and to live peace and harmony.

The cross that showed us grace and peace now burns with flames of bigotry.

That freedom was stolen on a faithful day when our brothers breathed their last.

A crowd around me mourns in agony as a wooden cross bleeds with blood.

A message of redemption is fashioned to a symbol that resembles death.

This wood stands marked with blood as tears of passion role down His innocent face.

Screams and shrieks come from inside as God’s beloved Son bleeds in Pain.

Here there is no death given by one who lived by peace.

This bleeding cross does not destroy.

Instead it makes them stronger.

Empowered, He fights for precious justice living life in peace and harmony.

A cross that once made us afraid now stands in noble victory.

That justice was served on that faithful day when our savior breathed His last.