Stephen J. Matlock's Blog, page 18

Moral Switzerlands

This is a prescient verse from 3000 years or so ago: “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on … Continue reading →

The Voices Are Coming from Inside the House

Before this day in 1957, Hazel Massery (left) had never met Elizabeth Eckford (right). After this day, they did not meet again until a decade later. And yet Ms. Massery became the face of white reaction to the mere presence … Continue reading →

#WakingUpWhite Chapter 28: I Am the Elephant

This chapter explores the meaning behind not only identifying as white (which is simple enough when we check off the census form), but also identifying white as a race in the same construct that black is a race. Being white, … Continue reading →

Juneteenth, Reparations, and What Do I Do About It?

Today is June 19th, a day when we remember that our American experiment with freedom included over 200 years of enslavement for Africans stolen and sold to white slavers. Today is the day when HR#40, a bill to set up … Continue reading →

#WakingUpWhite Chapter 27: Living into Expectations

This was a fascinating chapter for me, in that I hadn’t really dived into this before: what is it that we thought about ourselves when we were young that has somehow determined who we are as adults, based upon the … Continue reading →

In Response to the Dangers of “Social Justice”

Good words about the necessity of hands and feet working out the effects of the Gospel on hearts and minds. https://wp.me/p4qMcC-Bu

#WakingUpWhite Chapter 26: Surviving Versus Thriving

In this chapter Ms. Irving recalls a famous experiment conducted in 1968 by Ms. Jane Elliott on a class of third graders, and then repeated in other circumstances with adults in various settings, including corporate settings where the participants came … Continue reading →

Great Expectations

Goodness, there is great wisdom here about how to be. via Great Expectations (image: kingstown, st. vincent by reynolds beal)

#WakingUpWhite Chapter 25: Belonging

This chapter is about the tendency of white folks to feel like they belong everywhere. Ms. Irving focuses on the school environment, because she was a volunteer or participant at so many levels, including being on committees to help bring about and embrace “diversity.” Continue reading →

#WakingUpWhite Chapter 24: Everyone Is Different; Everyone Belongs

We need to do the right things when we can, but it is critically important that we continually reevaluate whether we're really doing the right things. We might not be able to wait until we have all the data before we try to make changes, but we absolutely must be willing to reexamine our efforts and even our understandings. Continue reading →