American society has always been a veritable melting pot of different ethnic, racial, and religious communities each with its own beliefs and traditions. But the story of the United States is not one of social harmony. Minority groups—such as the African-American and LGBTQ communities—continue to engage with religious leaders and draw on faith teachings to press for social equality in the public square. But while some voices of faith call for ongoing political advances, religion can also work to exclude people from full participation in American life. Faith can both contribute to social conflict and provide pathways for mutual dialogue and understanding. In this collection of conversations, people share how faith has affected how they approach social activism on pressing issues in contemporary society.
The interviews below were recorded by StoryCorps, a national nonprofit whose mission is to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world.
May 3, 2019
More stories about: Social Justice Race
Lois Reiner helped her friend Barbra Cotton become one of the first African Americans to settle down in Valparaiso, Indiana, when the small town was still a sundown community in the 1960s. In this conversation, Reiner discusses with friend Kristen Lewis the relationship between her Lutheran faith and decision to support integration efforts in Valparaiso.
This story was produced by StoryCorps.
April 16, 2019
More stories about: Christianity Immigration
Rev. Fahed Abu-Akel, a Presbyterian pastor, came from Palestine to the United States in the 1960s and found inspiration in the activism of Civil Rights leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr. In this conversation, Abu-Akel joins friend Rita Sabbagh to reflect on his experiences as an American immigrant and to explore his work to promote interfaith collaboration in the Atlanta area.
This story was produced by David Dault at Sandburg Media, LLC.
November 26, 2018
More stories about: Indigenous
Elizabeth Duran grew up on Pojoaque Pueblo, an Indian reservation in New Mexico, where she experienced firsthand the ways in which U.S. policy damaged the language, culture, and self-sufficiency of tribal communities. In this conversation, Duran joins friend Daniel Enger to discuss the loss of Native American knowledge about the natural world, as well as the enduring legacy of U.S. colonialism.
This story was produced by David Dault at Sandburg Media, LLC.
August 30, 2018
More stories about: Christianity Immigration
Jamie Gates and Rodney Scott both belong to the evangelical Church of the Nazarene, but otherwise come from very different backgrounds: Gates is a cultural anthropologist raised in South Africa, and Scott a law enforcement official who grew up along the U.S. border with Mexico. In this conversation, the friends reflect on their different understandings of religion and race in American public life.
This story was produced by David Dault at Sandburg Media, LLC.
October 13, 2017
More stories about: Race Social Justice
Rev. Ed King and Bishop Clay Lee were activists in the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi whose Methodist faith has helped to shape their approaches toward racial justice and reconciliation in the American South. In this conversation, the friends reflect on their activism and explore what it means to be a Christian committed to racial equity today.
This story was produced by Alero Oyinlola.
May 9, 2017
More stories about: Christianity Race
Calvin Moore and Kent Straith—raised in the Pentecostal Church and the Baptist Church, respectively—feel a disconnect with the morality of institutional Christianity and focus more on their personal faith. In this conversation, the friends discuss the relationship between race, religion, and the common good in wake of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
This story was produced by David Dault at Sandburg Media, LLC.
May 18, 2016
More stories about: Social Justice Catholicism
Bob Bossie, a Catholic priest and antiwar activist, was first awakened to the need for social activism when he witnessed a protest against the B-1 bomber. In this conversation, Bossie discusses with fellow activist Anne Ford how he came to be a social activist and how his spirituality has been impacted by the spirituality of the poor.
This story was produced by StoryCorps.
April 3, 2016
More stories about: Race Christianity
As a high school and college student during the 1960s, Ronald Wilkerson faced discrimination in his hometown and as a student at West Virginia University. In this conversation, he discusses with his friend Mike Youngren how his experiences with discrimination drove him to explore religions beyond Christianity, eventually bringing him to the Unitarian Universalist church.
This story was produced by StoryCorps.
June 18, 2015
More stories about: Islam Education
Khalafalla Osman was a student at the University of Albany when two gunmen opened fire at a contest for cartoon depictions of the Prophet Mohammed in 2015 in Garland, Texas. In this conversation, he discusses with his friend and fellow student Azman Din his experience with Islamophobia in the aftermath of the shooting and what Islamophobia means to him.
This story was produced by StoryCorps.
December 29, 2010
More stories about: Christianity
Rev. G.W.C. Richardson and Gwen Patten, two Black-American veterans of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of racial justice in the South. In this conversation, the friends reflect on Barack Obama’s place in the civil-rights narrative and consider the historical and contemporary challenges of being Black in America.
This story was produced by Alero Oyinlola.
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