Dr. Crawford Loritts is the incomparable African-American pastor of Fellowship Bible Church, a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic congregation located in Roswell, GA. This past Sunday evening he delivered to his congregation an emotional, life-changing message expressing his feelings on the racial issues facing our nation. It should be must-see viewing for anyone hoping to see progress and solutions to this national sin. To date, it has over 26,000 views. Click here or on the image to watch.
At the end of his message, he provided a series of action steps everyone can take to bring hope and healing.
Crawford’s instructions led me to take action and contact a number of my African-American friends the following day. One was a basketball coach who advises and personally invests in dozens of other coaches, many who are white men. Several admitted they wanted to build bridges with their African-American players but did not know the best way to begin. However, it is critical they do or they will lose their players. As the coach pointed out, “They will say, ‘You’re asking me to give everything I have to you when I step on the court but you’re not willing to give us everything you’ve got on this issue.”
Then earlier today, I read this USA Today article about Texas Longhorn football coach Tom Herman and his team meeting on racial issues and the events of past week.
Frankly, I am not qualified as a 54-year-old white man to offer advice on the topic of race relations. There is a difference between exposure and experience. However, two of these men are and the following is a summation of their thoughts along with Coach Herman.
Since the majority of their advice centered on the role of coaches, I will focus my post there. However, the following 6 Tips For White Coaches On Beginning Conversations With Their African-American Athletes About Race And Injustice are applicable for anyone in any field:
Acknowledge Racism Is An Insidious Sin
As Crawford pointed out, what makes racism such an insidious sin is it dehumanizes people. Racism ignores and rejects God’s unique design for specific people made in His image because of nothing more than a pigment of skin that He chose for them. He also points out the only solution to sin of any kind is The Gospel.
Start Conversations
Immediately schedule a meeting with your staff and players. Call your African-American friends. Engage the issue and then do the following:
Be Empathetic
Be willing to step into the pain of your players. Care about them and have compassion for what they have experienced. Tell them how much you love them. I have no idea what it is like to be black in America. Coach Herman said, “Well, one, if you’re white, we can’t (understand). I will never know, you will never know, none of us will ever know what it’s like to have that genuine fear. When I make an illegal U-turn and get pulled over, I fear about what the cost of the ticket is going to be. I don’t fear that I’m going to get dragged out of my car and maybe killed because of something I said or did. And that’s real for them.”
Ask Open-Ended Questions And Don’t Talk, Just Listen
This advice came from the college basketball coach. Beginning a conversation is as easy as saying, “I am so sorry for what has happened. My heart breaks for all involved and I can’t imagine what you are feeling. Can I ask how you are doing?” I did this several times yesterday. Each answer lasted over 30 minutes. Do not be in a hurry and be prepared to listen. Once again, you cannot show enough empathy.
Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable
Give your players a safe place to process their thoughts and feelings. You may not like what you hear but that is OK. We need to be uncomfortable. When discussing the mood of the meeting with his athletes, Coach Herman said, “All over the place. Some guys were were rightfully angry and wanted to vent. Some guys were more tempered in their tone and maybe more pragmatic. But, you know, it certainly ran the gamut of not only emotions, but the thoughts and ideas of how do we best unite as a team to create real change.”
Take Action To Then Combat Racism
Crawford noted it is no longer enough to be against racism, you must combat it when it raises its ugly head. I admitted to Crawford, who is a dear friend and my former pastor, that I have failed in a certain area. In the past (especially when I was younger), if someone displayed racist tendencies I would roll my eyes, think how stupid they were, and basically disassociate with them. It was a non-confrontational approach. We have learned silence is compliance. More is required. When something happens, white people must call racism for what it is, an insidious sin, and then lovingly address the issue. Call them into accountability and repentance. Change and stamping out this sin is going to happen one conversation at a time, one person at a time.
There are no easy solutions to this problem. But it starts at your school with coaches acknowledging racism is an insidious sin, start conversations, be empathetic, asking questions, listening, getting uncomfortable, and then taking action. But ultimately, the only solution is The Gospel.
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