Showing posts with label soical justice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label soical justice. Show all posts

Sunday, January 23, 2011

People just aren't who they appear. . .

The Sheep and the Goats


“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne.  All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

"The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

Matthew 25:31-46 (New International Version, ©2010)

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Drug enforcement: something I've observed for years

Leonard Pitts speaks the truth.  I read what's beneath his by-line whenever I see it. 

In an Op-Ed essay that appeared in The Dallas Morning News recently, Pitts "unpacks" Michelle Alexander's book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (2010).

Below you'll find a short sample of Pitt's analysis. 

Disturbing stuff. 

But, my experience in the city over the past 16 years confirms it. 

Read the sample: 

Leonard Pitts: Disturbing 'Jim Crow' book is a must read

According to federal figures, blacks and whites use drugs at a roughly equal rate in percentage terms. In terms of raw numbers, whites are far and away the biggest users – and dealers – of illegal drugs.

So why aren't cops kicking their doors in? Why aren't their sons pulled over a dozen times in nine months? Why are black men 12 times as likely to be jailed for drugs as white ones? Why aren't white communities robbed of their fathers, brothers, sons?

To read the entire Pitts essay click here.

To order Michelle Anderson's book go here

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