В центре Вашингтона национальные баптисты открыли центр социальной справедливости

National Baptists launch social justice center near US Capitol WASHINGTON (RNS) — Months ahead of the midterm elections, leaders of the National Baptist Convention U.S.A. Inc., a historically Black denomination, have launched a Center for Social Justice steps away from the U.S. Capitol and across the street from the Supreme Court. At an introduction ceremony on Tuesday (July 14), NBCUSA President Boise Kimber cited numerous challenges facing African Americans that he said need to be addressed: “Voting rights are being eroded. Black political leaders are being decimated by redistricting. Black history is being whitewashed and erased. Economic equality is also moving farther out of reach.” The announcement of the center was made in the chapel of the United Methodist Building where leaders said the NBCUSA will be sharing space with the National Religious Partnership for the Environment. Cassandra Carmichael, the partnership’s executive director, told RNS in a statement that her organization offered some of its space to the denomination. “We are currently working through the final details but definitely looking forward to working alongside them as they advocate for social and environmental justice issues,” she said. In his remarks, Kimber emphasized the need to mobilize voters — including in states like Tennessee, Alabama and Louisiana — where redistricting has occurred in the wake of the recent Supreme Court decision that gutted a section of the Voting Rights Act. RELATED: Black clergy strategize, preach and urge election turnout after Voting Rights Act gutting “For many years, we believed we were moving close to a more perfect union,” he said. “We even elected a Black president. And yet the past two years have shown how quickly hard-won progress can be undone. We became too comfortable, underestimating how quickly those gains could be taken away.” Members of Congress and of other faith organizations appeared at the launch event, which included several speakers who stood outside the building in the shadow of the Supreme Court after the chapel ceremony concluded. Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clarke said the launch of the center was timely and a reflection of the history of the Black church’s work on equality and justice. “From the Civil Rights Movement to the present day, faith leaders have challenged our nation to live up to its highest ideals and to fulfill the promises of our Constitution for every American,” said Clarke, D-N.Y. “As a national hub for policy engagement, research, education and advocacy, this center will carry that legacy forward.” Dozens of faith and political leaders attended the launch event, including other members of Congress and officials of other denominations, ecumenical groups and the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a Black consortium that is working with the NBCUSA on voter registration efforts. On Wednesday, the Black Opposition Coalition, a national research initiative about Black voters that includes the NAACP and nine other organizations, said new data shows that about two-thirds of Black voters “say that recent attacks on voting rights and gerrymandering in the South make them more likely to vote in the upcoming midterm election.” The center is to be housed in the century-old building that leases offices to religious and interfaith groups, including the National Council of Churches, the Islamic Society of North America and Interfaith Alliance, as well as programs of higher education institutions. It has been the backdrop of major protests and the home of apartment dwellers that included members of Congress. “The National Baptist Convention coming to Washington, D.C. to engage in ministries of justice is good news,” said Bishop Julius C. Trimble, general secretary of the United Methodist Church’s General Board of Church and Society, which is the owner of the building. “The National Baptist Convention currently does not have leased space at the United Methodist Building, but we are glad to welcome them to D.C. for the holy work of justice as demonstrated by love of God and neighbor,” he added. RELATED: United Methodist Building celebrates a century of presence on Capitol Hill