The Color Line

William Edward Burgardt DuBois died in 1963, but it was another four decades before I became familiar with his name and life. A centennial edition of his famous book The Souls of Black Folk introduced me to “the color line” in 2003. It was a phrase he borrowed from Frederick Douglass, and it is a phrase that helps us understand what is happening all around us today.

DuBois was the first Black PhD graduate from Harvard University, and his life of accomplishments and publications does justice to his distinguished degree.  He was, in many respects, the change he wanted to see (to quote the popular adage). But the efforts to erase the color line have, in these days, collided with a fake legal doctrine and a false christian gospel to unleash widespread attacks of people of color, here and everywhere.

In June of 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that race could not be used by universities when making enrollment decisions. Chief Justice John Roberts ruled that such university decisions must be color-blind. The case involved the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which first admitted people of color in 1955. In effect, the Court declared that 436 years of slavery, segregation and prejudice (1619-1955) were atoned for by 68 years of half-ass equality (1955-2023).

This legal decision was riding the racist waves driving the culture wars launched by Southern preachers in the 1960s. First, they pushed back against the Civil Rights Movement, then denounced the Black Lives Matter call for justice. Recently, their target has been the widespread use of DEI (Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion) as a way to grant everybody a fair hearing and at least a faint hope.

This fake legal doctrine, invented by the Roberts Court, surged to political power on the right-wing tsunami that has swept the nation, especially its rural and southern segments. Those committed to pushback against racial (and gender and sexual) equality have gained control of everything: state legislatures, national Congress, the Supreme Court, and the White House. They are intent on taking us back to 1950 when, they think, America was great.

A wide spectrum of Christians has supported this return to yesteryear: Evangelicals, Pentecostals, Catholics, and more.  But there is an odd shape to their religious rationale: it omits Jesus. Engage a MAGA Christian in a discussion of political aims today and the words and deeds of Jesus are never invoked. Leviticus, yes, and Deuteronomy, and Romans and Revelation: but never Jesus. There is no material in our gospel accounts of Jesus to justify the racial narrowness that has fueled this cultural wave of repression.

Consider these four things from their presidential savior.

• The Trump campaign for President focused on the danger of Latino immigrants. What was needed, Trump promised, is a mass campaign to deport millions of brown people. These are, by the definition of Jesus, our neighbors. But they have been demonized, criminalized, and dehumanized, most powerfully by those with sanctuary pulpits and press conferences.
• The Trump regime has banned from all federal policies and programs any mention of DEI. They claim, of course, that it is required by both law and fairness; but we all know it is a public declaration of their disdain for any minority. Whiteness is the new official standard of fairness and freedom.
• Trump and his henchmen are intent on reducing the federal workforce, citing “good business practice.” But we know otherwise. In 2023, less than 60% of the federal workforce was White, explaining how this crusade to reduce the number of federal employees will disproportionately impact people of color.
• The Trumpster has now announced that he wants to own Gaza, remove all the brown Palestinians to some more remote and undesirable spot, so he and his friends (including Israelis) can redevelop that coastline in a way fit for their rich and powerful friends. The fact that it is illegal, immoral, and despicable is immaterial; it fits nicely under the high-flying flag of white supremacy

The political philosophy behind this race war is one thing; but my concern as a preacher and theologian is the religious vision that underlies so much of it. It was MAGA Christians who launched this campaign five decades ago; and it was MAGA Christians who landed this agenda into the places of political power. Without MAGA Christians, none of this would be in play.

It is hard to overstate how the religious and political vision of MAGA Christians contradicts the life and teaching of Jesus. But it is here and will be here for a long while. Those of us who trace our faith and practice to Jesus must be strong, and steady, and hopeful. So I conclude on this good word: one trending hashtag on the ill-fated platform TikTok is … #leavingmaga.