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Awaken HEARTS
Confront INJUSTICE
Inspire TRANSFORMATION

Working to dismantle White Supremacy in the ELCA and our world.

Collage of Images people advocating for Racial Justice,  hands with Peace Signs, BIPOC people in leadership, four young adults looking out toward a new day arms linked over eachothers shoulders.

9

Regions

3

Expressions

6

Ethnic Associations

1

Body in Christ

OUR PURPOSE

White people dismantling White supremacy

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The Association of White Lutherans for Racial Justice brings together people of white European descent, white-identifying members of the ELCA, and partners of other ethnicities to be a visible and active anti-racist witness for a multicultural church.

 

The Association of White Lutherans for Racial Justice works within the church and in our own communities to advance racial justice. The association exists to build community to help dismantle racism, white privilege, and white power.

Two white women hugging at a racial justice gathering. Both are wearing glasses and both have purple hair with big smiles.

WHAT WE DO

The association seeks to connect people across the ELCA to share ideas from congregations, synods and Regions, on making racial justice an active part of our Church.

Praying Hands

OUR
INITIATIVES

ADVOCACY

When leadership and positions of power cause and perpetuate harm, our faith tells us we must do the next right thing.

We advocate, with other ethnic associations, for policy changes at the national church level that will guide the Church toward systems focused on Racial Equity. We also support synods and congregations in making and changing policy.

EDUCATION

Becoming someone who can make anti-racist decisions and advocate for racial justice takes time. We are always learning; there will always be something new to understand.
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As such, the association provides training and resources for ELCA racial justice teams, congregations, and individual members yearning to do the kindom work of racial justice.

 

ORGANIZING

Diversity and equity occur when there is intentionality; because of this, we are committed to supporting our sibling ELCA ethnic associations in their work for racial justice, following their leads, and using our voices to amplify their joys and concerns.

Why does the ELCA need a white people association?

Isn’t it already a white people association?

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is the whitest denomination in the United States. Built upon predecessor churches strongly aligned with their European heritage, our church in the U.S, often conflates that heritage with the Lutheran faith. The Lutheran denomination is growing around the world, and is much more diverse, especially in Africa.

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White people built a denomination that harms People of the Global Majority* both within and outside of our denomination, and it is our job to confess, lament, and repent for our complicity in this harm so that we may begin the process of reconciliation. To do this work, we work with our siblings in the other ELCA ethnic associations, following their lead on the path toward healing. 

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Given the power that white people have in the ELCA (and in American society at large), we can use our collective influence to speak truth to power in the ELCA, to stand behind our sibling ethnic associations when they call for our assistance, and to educate and work with other white people to make, necessary change in the ELCA. ​

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*"Global majority" is a collective term for non-white people of African, Asian, and Latin American descent [1] who constitute approximately 85 percent of the global population. It has been used as an alternative to terms that are seen as racialized, like "ethnic minority" and "person of color" (POC), or more regional terms like "visible minority" in Canada and "Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic" (BAME) in the United Kingdom. It roughly corresponds to people whose heritage can be traced back to nations of the Global South.[2]

OTHER WAYS YOU CAN SUPPORT OUR WORK.

Join our teams or create one!

 

Within every movement, there’s a place for many gifts.

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The association has people working on communications, education, advocacy, organizing, and more.  Join one of our teams or create a new one! We are always looking for people with skills and a heart for the work that support our efforts to become an anti-racist Church. If you would like to support our shared work, let us know!

Three white women smiling at an association event. The woman in the middle has a red sweater and a cross, she has her arms around the two women that are beside her.

BECOME A PARTNER.

When we talk about transformation, it is an invitation to tap into the ability to move from wherever you are toward being an antiracist. Theologically, we are inviting you to have your heart broken open by Christ to move forward on the journey toward antiracism.

We invite you to become a member/partner of the association. This is is a journey. It is layered work. Whether you are just beginning or have been on the slow road for a while, we want to be in community with you. Individuals, families, congregations, synods, institutions or organizations can become partners! 

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