“Faith Trumps Atheist Angst” By Derryck Green

Op-ed submission by Project 21

This is the time of year when belligerent atheists corral fellow “freethinkers” together in an attempt to legally disrupt displays of the Nativity. Wherever these innocent and usually welcomed Christian religious displays are found, there’s often a bitter atheist complaining to local authorities and the media because public display of the baby Jesus in a manger offends their irreligious sensibilities.

And the atheist hand appears to be gaining strength as the “war on Christmas” seems to escalate each year.

But this is the only time of year when angry atheists are apparently willing to present themselves in large numbers. I’ve seen a few atheists plead their empty cases during the Easter season, but it’s Christmastime when they are most aggressive. Why? After all, if atheism had inherent worth, the atheists would engage the wider culture all the time instead of attempting to offend and insult the devout by putting their collective finger in the eye of believers just once a year. Atheists must want to make those revering the religious aspect of Christmas as miserable as they seem to be.

It’s also interesting that it’s only the God worshipped by Christians with whom radical atheists really take issue. They don’t seem to have the same fervor for challenging Ramadan, Passover or Diwali. Is it easier to bully those who believe in “turn(ing) the other cheek” than those more forceful in defending their beliefs? I think there’s more to it. Atheists feel threatened because they have nothing to offer. Religion, any religion, does.

Remember a year ago, when 26 children and school employees were massacred at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut? Real feelings presented themselves during this tragedy. People in the media, social networks and across America sent prayers to Newtown, to the victims, their families and residents in general. On Facebook and Twitter, people posted Bible verses in sincere and sympathetic efforts to provide comfort and understanding to those affected by the horror of what had occurred. Articles were written about how clergy scrapped prepared sermons to discuss how suffering and evil can be overcome.

Likewise, after that unspeakable tragedy, religious leaders were interviewed by the media about the nature of God, suffering, evil and justice and how people can make sense of it all. Among the clergy were several Catholic priests, rabbis and the pastor of New Hope Community Church in Newtown. Local residents, in shock and struggling to understand what happened, gathered for a prayer vigil at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church. It was one of many local vigils.

Yet, of all the vigils, there seemed to be no mention of any freethinkers or skeptics invited to soothe the shocked masses. No vigils appeared to be totally devoid of religious or spiritual accoutrements. There’s a good reason.

Atheism is an empty belief system that doesn’t offer followers comfort, hope or emotional solace when the world goes bad. Atheism doesn’t provide a notion of divine justice, reward and punishment or heaven and hell for acts of goodness or overwhelming evil. Christianity does. Atheism simply… is.

This isn’t to say there aren’t individual atheists who sympathized and had empathy for the city of Newtown, the victims of Hurricane Sandy and western wildfires or for those stricken by profound illness or accidents. Similarly, there are those who don’t believe in God who still identify with those who celebrate Christmas. I know some of them and we get along fine.

But, as a belief system represented by those whose motivation appears to offend, organized atheism to me is bankrupt. I find it wanting. Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Indeed, He is.

God bless the Christmas season, and may He continue to bless those in need of His compassion, wisdom and solace.

Derryck Green, a member of the national advisory council of the Project 21 black leadership network, received a M.A. in Theological Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing his doctorate in ministry at Azusa Pacific University.

The Intellectual Guise of Black on Black Hate Speech

Recently a friend was ranting to me about a segment of The O’Reilly Factor he had watched, where a conservative African-American radio talk show host, David Webb, was commenting in agreement with O’Reilly on the George Zimmerman fiasco verdict. My friend made the statement that Webb was a nothing but a “white man in black skin”. 

He then went on to inform me of a survey he had seen which stated that 70% of white people in America agreed with the verdict. I asked him, how many black people did he guesstimate also agreed with the verdict. The question caught him off guard and he struggled to answer… “maybe 1%”. I told him it was probably closer to 70% than 1%.

I also told him I totally disagreed with his categorizing of Webb and that he was indeed a “black man in black skin”. There is one group of people who hate poor black people more than white people do… and that’s the black middle and upper class. They are quite adept in their use coded intellectualized language in their condemnation of their less fortunate brothers and sisters. Which is why despite their political affiliations, cultural heritage, gender or sexual orientation, many in the black middle and upper class are more sympathetic to the white supremacy based thinking on black criminality of a Bill O’Reilly, a Sean Hannity and even a Barack Obama.

Regardless of their eloquence, when you break it down, it’s black on black hate speech… steeped in self-hate. Whether it’s the comments of David Webb, Don Lemon, Barack Obama, The Conservative Black Chick, the article below by Project 21 member Derryck Green… all are reflective of the internalized “divide and conquer” strategy within the African-American community.

Race Fatigue by Derryck Green

Help me, I’m suffering from acute race fatigue!

After gavel-to-gavel coverage of the George Zimmerman trial, I need a break. After all the post-verdict anger, lamentations and inane discussions about what it is to be a black man in America, I’m exhausted.

After watching President Obama liken himself to Trayvon Martin, I’ve had enough. All this talk about race seems intentionally shortsighted and disingenuous. It simply implicates whites and infantilizes the black man. And those needing to hear straight talk the most are shortchanged by the soulless profiteers of the racial grievance industry.

I’m tired of Trayvon Martin being compared to Emmett Till – which, by extension, projects a racial ethos similar to that of 1955 upon contemporary America. Martin was no Till, period. Martin was not some kind of martyr. Please, already.

I’m tired of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. being photoshopped into a hoodie. This is nothing short of repulsive, and it denigrates the memory of Dr. King’s contribution to racial justice. Our nation shall forever be in debt to Dr. King. The same cannot and should not be said nor insinuated about Trayvon Martin. There is no comparison.

I’m especially exhausted of hearing condescending white progressives encouraging blacks to maintain a false narrative of victimization. The embarrassing demonstrations increased racial fatigue because those engaging in them did so at the expense of their dignity and credibility. These people – willfully or through neglect – ignored the facts and evidence of the case in a grandstanding attempt to make whites feel responsible and guilty for perpetuating racial discrimination. At the same time, whites feel obligated to perform penance of indeterminate length – defined by the racial grievance industry – without assurance of absolution.

Meanwhile, black-on-black crime is much more destructive and prevalent than a “white Hispanic” killing a black male. The charade is disgusting, and I’m tired of it. The Zimmerman trial wasn’t about race. The FBI’s investigation found absolutely no evidence of racial bias.

Martin was criminally profiled. In the 14 months prior to the fatal Martin-Zimmerman confrontation, the Retreat at Twin Lakes apartment complex was burglarized eight times – with all suspects being roughly the same height, build and color as Martin.

Thus, Martin wasn’t stalked or “hunted down like a “rabid dog” because he was black. As noted during the trial, suspicion was raised because of Martin’s behavior and because he fit a very specific criminal profile.

Blacks aren’t helpless victims abused by “the system.” The facts prove it. The reason that blacks – specifically black males – are disproportionally represented in the criminal justice system is because we commit a disproportionate amount of violent crime. Period.

According to FBI statistics, of the 2,938 murder offenders counted in 2011, 1,803 offenders were black. The total number of black murders in 2011, regardless of age, was 2,695. Of that number, 2,447 had black offenders. Blacks are complicit in their own demise. The system that blacks fear, which they claim is out to get them, is – in reality – blacks themselves.

In other words, there are too many black and progressive fingers pointed outward and not enough pointed inward. This is because there’s no political capital to be gained by doing this – no emotions to be exploited and no one to morally indict as racist.

Does racism exist? Yes, of course. But no one race is responsible for all – or even most – of it. Does racial discrimination exist? Yes, again. And there always will be on this side of heaven.

For blacks and their enablers to continue to foment this notion that racism is America’s number one problem, however, is self-defeating, immoral and perpetuates a lie. Too many blacks have no idea how irresponsible and embarrassing they look in all of this. And I fear, very soon, they will be called on their Dream-killing commodification and idolization of race.

By then, I hope I’ve recovered from my race fatigue.

“Where is the Black Church?” by Derryck Green

Op-ed submission by Project 21

Problems infecting and affecting the black community must be addressed in a serious and sincere manner. Many of these problems center around moral values that were once readily available and in abundance among black Americans. Now they are increasingly becoming rare.

To deal with this crisis, there should be a focused and concentrated effort, originating within black churches, that renews hearts and minds. This renewal should focus on Christian moral values as the answer to the pervading psychological ills that now afflict black America.

That blacks are in need of spiritual, social and economic renewal is no secret. A certain segment of blacks have succumbed to behaviors that most would label as counterproductive and undignified. Frankly, these behaviors are embarrassing and morally disturbing. What’s worse is that these behaviors are now being accepted as “culturally authentic.”

Under the current societal trappings of “tolerance,” “diversity” and moral relativism, blacks have willingly relinquished the painful but necessary process of self-critique. This behavioral and spiritual deficiency leads black culture to define “authenticity” as comporting oneself with stereotypes that the generations of many of our grandparents and great grandparents sought to avoid and overcome. In other condescending terms, this “authenticity” is often equated with “acting black.”

In assessing the situation, we can conclude that the black church has failed its moral and spiritual obligation of leadership, because, despite the many claims to the contrary, the behavioral effects and cultural degradation are now too abundant to ignore. Of course, not all black churches have failed. Collectively, however, churches have failed black America.

Further, many well-meaning white people, Christian and non-Christian alike, also are silently complicit in this failure due to fear of reprisals such as being labeled “racist” or “insensitive.” In refusing to speak out and condemn unacceptable behaviors, these people passively accept and legitimize a form of conduct that they likely would vigorously oppose if it came from someone in their own family.

Recognizing the impotence of so many black churches, we must assume that many black ministers are evading discussions of personal and communal sin. Sermons regarding the guilt and shame of socially self-limiting and damaging behaviors obviously don’t contain the potent condemnation they once did. It’s a self-evident truth predicated upon the preponderance of detrimental activity that proliferates within black culture. These activities represent moral and spiritual captivity.

The first enslavement of our community was obvious, it was an existential reality recognized by blacks. Unwanted, it was still an accepted reality. It was challenged as a moral evil and was abolished.

This second slavery, when fully understood, is much more reprehensible than the first. Though American blacks are physically free, their spirits and minds are still bound, even though the generations of blacks living in America today are among the freest blacks ever in the history of the world.

I’m angry and sad that a community whose heritage and dignity once coalesced around the lordship of Jesus and his church has allowed itself to come to this. This apparent timidity of the black pulpit, in not properly teaching the gospel of truth and not holding congregations to a higher standard of personal and communal morality, has had disastrous effects.

We know the power of the black church as has been evidenced by history. The black church sustained generations of blacks during periods of American history when society was much more intolerant and unbecoming than it is now. It fostered an elevated level of character that included “blessing one’s enemy” while “turning the other cheek,” even when circumstances made it exceptionally difficult to do so.

Blacks must realize that our cultural redemption won’t come from the tip of a pen of a liberal politician. It will come by returning to the biblical values contained in the Christian faith of their fathers, facilitated by a church that bears witness in the pulpit.

Derryck Green, a member of the national advisory council of the Project 21 black leadership network, received a M.A. in Theological Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing his doctorate in ministry at Azusa Pacific University.

“Jovan, Jason and Jumping to Conclusions” by Derryck Green

Note: photo and link to Jason Whitlock article was added by administrator.

Op-ed submission by Project 21

Jason Whitlock started it, and Jason Whitlock can end it.

On December 1, the Fox Sports columnist penned a column about what happened earlier that morning when Jovan Belcher — the starting linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs — murdered his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins (the mother of his three-month-old daughter), and then drove to Arrowhead Stadium and killed himself.

In his piece, Whitlock questioned and lamented how the NFL and the Chiefs decided to play their scheduled game against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. He argued the appropriate thing to do was cancel the game.

So far, no harm no foul.

But, instead of questioning the unjustified reasons why Jovan Belcher would kill the mother of his daughter and then turn the gun on himself (or sticking just to the sporting angle), Whitlock took the opportunity to lament gun violence — as if the gun was used independently and without cooperation of Jovan Belcher’s hands and mind.

Whitlock also lamented America’s “gun culture” — a culture he never thoroughly explained yet passively blamed them for “more and more domestic disputes [ending] in the ultimate tragedy, and that more convenience store confrontations over loud music coming from a car will leave more teenage boys bloodied and dead.” Again, Whitlock acted as if guns kill people independently of their owners.

On December 3, Whitlock doubled-down on his politically correct, logically-deficient and morally-deficient position and further exposed his lack of intellectual credibility for all to see. During CNN-contributor Roland Martin’s podcast, Whitlock likened the National Rifle Association to… the KKK.

That’s right, the Ku Klux Klan. Telling Martin “I did not go as far as I’d like to go” with his column, Whitlock unload — implying the NRA is responsible for arming black youths with guns used to kill other black youths. He also seemed to blame the NRA for not only gifting black kids with guns, but also supplying them with drugs.

Aside from the embarrassing and unadulterated stupidity of Whitlock’s comments, he proceeded to take illogical leaps with absolutely no connected dots to verify his recklessness. He unjustly made racist and conspiratorial accusations about an organization that advocates gun safety and responsible use as well as protects gun rights.

What Whitlock claimed about the NRA was morally indefensible. It stripped him of any remaining credibility after an already-shaky opening salvo. The irony is that Whitlock is the one thinking in racial terms when he assumed only whites are, or can be, members of the NRA.

That said, where’s his proof the NRA is arming black youths? Has he read it? If so, where and when did he read it? Are these incidents in the police reports of gun crimes committed by black youth? If so, publish these police reports.

I’m willing to bet that the black youths on Chicago’s South Side, who are doing their best at contributing to the city’s sky-high black murder rate, aren’t card-carrying members of the NRA. How can they be? They’re black!

Furthermore, as he did in his original piece, Whitlock turns those who would use guns to settle disputes into victims as opposed to willing participants who chose guns over knives, clubs or bare hands in their acts of violence, terror and destruction.

Once again, guns don’t kill people without human participation. Belcher wasn’t a victim. He intentionally used his gun to kill his girlfriend and himself. And, as much as Whitlock would try and paint the picture, the drug-addled and armed black youths he laments aren’t victims of racist white gun-club members bent on destroying black communities.

Criminals consciously make decisions to use guns illegally, and — as a result — are responsible for their own actions.

Jason Whitlock should apologize to the families of Kasandra Perkins and Jovan Belcher — in that order — for using them as political pawns to advocate more gun control. He should then apologize to the NRA for his baseless, deliberate and absurd smear of the NRA’s credibility.

The consequence of Jason Whitlock’s thinking inevitably disarms law-abiding citizens, ensuring more gun violence. This is the exact opposite of what Whitlock claims he wants, and would ensure there will be more victims like Kasandra Perkins.

Derryck Green, a member of the national advisory council of the Project 21 black leadership network, received a M.A. in Theological Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing his doctorate in ministry at Azusa Pacific University.

“Eric Holder’s Plantation” by Derryck Green

Op-ed submission by Project 21

It’s said Lyndon Baines Johnson used voter fraud to win his 1948 Senate primary campaign. In 1954, then-Senator Johnson orchestrated a law prohibiting church involvement in electoral politics. Yet it was LBJ’s presidential library where Attorney General Eric Holder chose to demonize ballot protection laws last year.

And it was Holder who, this past May, huddled with black clergy from the Council of National Black Churches and the IRS and the Congressional Black Caucus to determine how political black churches could be without running afoul of LBJ’s rule. And, for good measure, he further criticized voter ID.

In the analogy that black Americans are imprisoned on the liberal plantation, it’s fair to consider Eric Holder the overseer. In the days of slavery, it was the overseer who managed through fear to maximize crop yields. Nowadays, it’s fear management for political yields.

Today’s bogeymen are 30 state-level laws, enacted through the democratic process, that require proper identification to vote. These popular laws protect against voter fraud, from preventing illegal immigrants from voting to dealing with bogus registrations and identity thieves voting in other peoples’ names.

Holder and his fellow overseers say these laws disfranchise and suppress minority voters. The NAACP alleges in a 2011 report that possibly 25 percent of black Americans don’t possess the proper documentation to meet some ID requirements. Yet the NAACP’s report didn’t contain a single instance of someone deprived of his or her legal vote.

Despite being completely divorced from reality, these radical claims become harder to dismiss when allegedly revered figures such as NAACP president and CEO Ben Jealous calls voter ID the new Jim Crow and Holder calls them “poll taxes.”

Holder cracked his symbolic whip last May to frighten clergymen and their congregations against the idea of abandoning President Obama. Obama’s recent “evolution” on same-sex marriage sent a chill across black churches, and the threat of Jim Crow reborn helps rekindle support.

Holder’s tactics of intimidation and fear is condescending. Having a valid government-issued ID isn’t a poll tax, and the only form of suppression it represents is suppressing voter fraud. Blacks board airplanes, open checking accounts and rent cars just like everyone else. They buy guns, alcohol and tobacco products. All of these purchases now usually require ID. Who is complaining about these restrictions on black Americans?

Yet Holder expects clergymen to take this selective outrage back and insult the intellect of their congregations? How offensive!

LBJ stole people’s votes. He silenced churches. He did that to all races. He was certainly not a man of integrity to follow. Yet liberals embrace LBJ’s legacy, and they seem willing to continue to condone an environment in which votes can be stolen and in which only churches with the right connection can speak.

At what point will blacks become so offended at this condescension that they will no longer participate in the madness? Holder and his fellow overseers are basically telling their obedient, unquestioning slaves that they are too dumb, too lazy — or both — to obtain valid ID. This is absurd!

More importantly, given the ear of the black clergy, why did Holder rush to push politics when he could have helped create a more moral and responsible society? Why didn’t he instead encourage these pastors to return to the pulpit to preach about men being men — being responsible husbands and fathers and shunning the temptation of crimes, drugs and misogyny?

Rather than harkening back to the brutal past, why not promote a dignified humanity that comes with being created in the image of God — the dignity that our enslaved ancestors literally died in struggle to achieve.

But that was apparently too much to ask. For overseer Eric Holder, politics apparently trumps character.

Derryck Green, a member of the national advisory council of the Project 21 black leadership network, received a M.A. in Theological Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing his doctorate in ministry at Azusa Pacific University.