We must never discredit the stories of those effected by the racial tensions of the deep south

30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”

A few years ago,  Linda and I toured Selma, Alabama the place most people remember as 'bloody Sunday because of the sheer brutality of that time period. 

 Just think for a moment you were one of those young people on the receiving end of police brutality in Selma, Alabama.  You feel the billy clubs forced into your back and the hand of the brutal officer pushing you away from the door of the building you're trying to go into just so you could do your civic business.  

Think for a moment what it would be like if you were on the taunting end of the racial epithets and anything else to remind you of your standing in the community? Think for a moment seeing a 'cross burning' in the yard of your friend, or worse watching their house burn down at the hands of the KKK or attending a funeral service of a child killed because of those racial atrocities?

This was what it was like growing up in the south, a place where many still struggle with nightmares to this day because of what happened to them.  The events of Selma have become known as the 'black eye' of the south- something that we should never be proud of, nor should we-not ever.

Which is why it really bothers me when some of our political leaders try to make light of those racial tensions with flippant comments to constituents in their communities.

 There were real human beings on the receiving end of the police and political brutality. 

There were people so traumatized by the events of that era that to this day they have nightmares and flashbacks. 

Just as I learned from growing up in St. Louis Park, Minnesota the home to the largest number of holocaust survivors, we must learn to listen to those impacted by those civil rights events.  We must validate who they are as human beings and ask our Lord what we can learn from their stories. We must learn to walk in their shoes.

After all, wasn't that what Jesus did in his short stay on earth?  Didn't he try to understand the Samaritan woman, or the man who was blind from birth, or the person with leprosy, or anyone who felt ostracized by the Roman community because they didn't fit the mold? 

Let us never forget that a greater preponderance of immigrants who come to America become successful, with some starting multinational corporations employing 100's of thousands of men and woman.

If we truly want to be a follower of Jesus, we must have compassion for people while treating them as equals to yourself.

If we truly want to be a follower of Jesus, we must learn to listen and validate other peoples stories without casting judgment. 

The events of that bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama were real and we must never forget the impact those events had on the lives of those impacted by them.