Mormonism and White Supremacy: American Religion and The Problem of Racial Innocence

by Joanna Brooks

failures. First, this approach is not simply passive “forgetfulness”; it constitutes an active erasure and rewriting of uncomfortable aspects of Mormon history and endangers historical memory. Because this erasure is “selective” and pertains only to matters that might “embarrass” the Church, it cannot be considered benign. It continues key practices of white supremacy in Mormonism by excluding Black testimony, insisting on prophetic infallibility, repressing dissent, and fostering silent agreements among Mormons and between Mormons and the public to co-construct and preserve white innocence. Second, by modeling this approach to complex moral problems, the Church signals to members that “selective” “forgetting” of past wrongs is enough to resolve them; that repentance need not involve the assumption of responsibility and reconciliation, let alone restitution or reparation; and that the discomfort that comes with individual and collective soul searching