On Tuesday Oct 1st a verdict was reached in Dallas. From the facts presented to the jury the conclusion was reached that former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger is guilty of the murder of Botham Jean.
That this case, the murder of Botham Jean, has gained a great deal of media attention ever more reflects the conflicts and immediate lines drawn because of the reality of issues of race, policing, and institutional and system racism in our society. We cannot deny the reality that because Amber Guyger was a white police officer who entered the home of a black man, Botham Jean, and shot him to death this case drew even more attention and raised the anxiety and tension around this verdict.
The realities of institutional and systemic racism in our communities is something we as people of faith must be educated in and actively work to confront. Next week our NT-NL Synod, ELCA Leadership Convocation at Briarwood Retreat Center/Briarwood Leadership Center will be addressing these issues and you are invited to join us. We will engage how the intersections of race, gender, economic class, power, and much more create an environment in which doing the work required to be actively anti-racist is essential. https://www.ntnl.org/event/2019-leadership-convocation/
No verdict can bring back the life of Botham Jean. We pray for his family, that this verdict may bring a sense of justice, relief, and closure to them. We pray for Amber Guyger, whose actions that day violently ended Botham Jean’s life and have altered the course of many lives including her own. We continue to pray for a just society moving towards treating all with the dignity and respect they deserve. For the peace of God that passes all human understanding. #NTNL #BWTX #InMissionTogether