October 28, 2005 — The nation mourns the passing of Rosa Parks, who will forever
be one of the enduring symbols of this nation's struggle for racial equality.
Her actions, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott of 1955, resulted in more
than just the freeing up of a single seat on a single bus in a single city in
a lone country we call America.
Her actions — to remain seated and not to give up her place to
a white male — not only meant that African Americans could now stay
seated anywhere on public buses, but her actions subsequently lead to other moves
toward legal equality and equal opportunity.
Equal opportunity in employment with the passage
of the Civil Rights Act of 1965 meant that not only could African Americans
ride the bus, but as the saying goes, could now even drive it and even own the
bus company. Other measures toward legal equality included the 1954 Supreme Court
decision in Brown vs. Board of Education, equality in voting
with the congressional approval of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and
the 1968 Fair Housing Act.
With the Rosa Parks' passing, the
nation has lost one of its greats. Ms. Parks has been called an icon of a movement.
Rightly, the United States Senate and House of Representatives will allow her
to lie in Honor in the Rotunda of the Capitol. As we mourn her, she would probably
be the first to say that we still have more to do. Legal equality has not brought
about actual social equality — in education, health care, housing
and employment.
We need only look around to see that inequality is still a fact of life in
the United States. Katrina washed away the coverings of systemic poverty in one
part of our nation, but it still exists in many places in the U.S. and around
the world.
In small stories printed in national newspapers we can find reports of studies
which indicate that our society has not yet arrived. On October 14, 2005, the
Washington Post printed a story entitled, "Painkillers Under stocked
in Minority Areas, Study Says" . The study indicated that pharmacies in
African American neighborhoods, whether poor or middle-class, did not stock as
many painkillers as pharmacies in white neighborhoods. The stories suggested
doctors were less likely to prescribe pain medication to African American people.
USA Today reported: "Hospital inequalities widen the care
gap — new studies of the persistent racial divide may point to solutions." This
story featured a 52-year-old African American woman who never received a prostheses
after a mastectomy this past July. The story continued, "she can not afford
the pills to keep her cancer from returning."
Several civil rights organizations have released information about new public
service radio ads that will attempt to give support and information to Asians
who are the subject of housing discrimination. These ads will run in ten Asian
languages.
We still have much to do. In Rosa Parks's memory we should celebrate the strides
we have made while still striving for both legal and societal equality for all
persons.
In a broken and fearful world the Spirit gives us courage
to pray without ceasing,
to witness among all peoples to Christ as Lord and Savior,
to unmask idolatries in Church and culture,
to hear the voices of people long silenced,
and to work with others for justice, freedom, and peace.
In gratitude to God, empowered by the Spirit,
We strive to serve Christ in our daily tasks and to live holy and joyful lives,
even as we watch for God's new heaven and new earth praying,
"Come Lord Jesus!"
— Brief Statement of Faith, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
"For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use
your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves
to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, 'You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.' If, however, you bite and devour one another,
take care that you are not consumed by on another." (Galatians 5: 13-15) |
