The Uneasy Conscience of a White Christian: Making Racial Equity a Priority - Paperback

by Clifford Williams (Author)

Do White people bear moral responsibility for racial disparities? Are White Christians under a spiritual mandate to make racial equity a priority? Clifford Williams taught philosophy at Christian colleges for many years, including a course on race. He has journeyed alongside students as they gained insights about racism. In this book, he draws from deeply personal stories as he shows the need for White Christians to recognize the impact of racism and to cultivate key character traits which enable them to pursue racial equity. In succinct and thoughtful prose, interwoven with first-person accounts of racialized experiences by people of color, Williams describes the importance of the Golden Rule, the power and effects of racial socialization, and the harm racism does to those who harbor it. He asks the haunting question, "Why do White people react so strongly to Black power?" He explains why widespread church integration in the United States may never exist. He unpacks the concept of White identity and links police brutality to faulty moral perception. This book gently explains what White Christians need to do to make racial equity a priority.

Author Biography

Clifford Williams is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Trinity College in Deerfield, Illinois. He is the author of Existential Reasons for Belief in God (2011) and Religion and the Meaning of Life (2020).