Grace United Methodist Church (UMC) will host a meeting on Social Justice with its team community advisor, Rubina Patton, on Sunday, March 19.
The church’s Facebook page noted that the Social Justice Team encouraged the congregation to learn about the history of the Delmar Divide.
Besides, they would discuss how discriminatory laws have affected and continue to affect individuals of color, as posted on the website.
In addition, the church mentioned that Patton would share her personal story of her struggles while buying her property.
During the gathering, the participants would learn about current initiatives to remove the Divide, as stated in the post.
Social Justice Ministry
The church’s website explains that its Social Justice Team is intended to dismantle dangerous societal structures in their communities. They explained that this harm results in suffering.
In addition, they noted that the negative impact leads Grace UMC’s Mission Team to offer care from their groups. The team stressed that they are inspired by the commitment to respond to the freedom and power that God gives.
As further stated, they were encouraged to resist the devil, inequality, and oppression in whatever kinds they were presented with. They added that the team works to deal with the root of injustice and struggles in the world.
Moreover, the Social Justice Team takes measures for the people to renounce their wickedness and repent of the sin that is within them as individuals and as a church, as explained on the website.
Initiatives of Social Justice Team
The same website emphasized that the Social Justice Tem of Grace UMC is dedicated to destroying the walls of silence that are common within the church.
They explained that often it is unintentional for the church to be silent, which preserves the status quo and stifles the voices of those suffering.
According to them, the team leads the congregation in this initiative by prioritizing the different sources of injustice the community deals with monthly. They also discuss measures each individual could take to join the struggle for justice.
As further stated, the team focused on community health issues like voter’s rights, food security, gun violence, and environmental justice from July 2021 to the end of 2022. They added that they also talked about mental health issues during this period.
About Delmar Divide
The Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis revealed that Delmar Divide is a term introduced by a BBC mini-documentary to describe the stark racial makeup and socioeconomic inequity.
As further mentioned, this injustice exists immediately in the north and south of Delmar Boulevard. They said that the repercussion of this divide is evident along the area.
Moreover, the website posted that 99 % of Black people and 70% of White comprise the north and the south. They noted that only 5% of the Black residents had earned their bachelor’s degree, while 67% of White individuals completed their higher education.
They added that the divide took time to occur. An activist, artist, and filmmaker, Darian Wigfall, says on the Now This Segment that the racial divide is an aftershock from their history.
He stated that the divide started in the 20th century with racial segregation laws, housing covenants, and redlining.
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