The Arc Bends Towards Justice

“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice”. Martin Luther King revived this Theodore Parker quote and the state of Georgia has reminded us again of its fundamental truth.

Reverend Raphael Warnock became the first Black senator of Georgia and the eleventh to hold that office.

In a week when the police murder of a Black child went unpunished; and a Wisconsin prosecutor declined to file charges against the officer who shot Jacob Blake – a Black man held by the shirt and shot seven times in the back, in view of his children and ultimately paralyzing him … We needed Warnock’s win. Not just Black people. All people, even the ones who remain defiant in their ignorance and claim white supremacy. We all needed this.

And then I forced myself to listen to Trump’s speech prior to the storming of the capitol by white nationalists. There is not a doubt in my mind that his words fed the anger and the actions of these terrorists. There is not a doubt in my mind that the on-duty force stood down as the insurrection took place. I have witnessed militarized police take action against peaceful protesters. There was none of that. The terrorists were determined to stop the proceedings and they succeeded. There was nothing peaceful about it.

Remember this: the arc of the universe bends towards justice – but it does not bend on its own. We need to stand firm against injustice. It’s within our reach to end the disease of hatred, but it will take each of us. It will take our honesty. It will take our courage and it will take our love. 

This country has tolerated the ignorance of racism since its inception. 

It’s time we end it.