Permanent slavery in America was the result of a lawsuit filed by Anthony Johnson in 1621. He was a well-known landholder farming hundreds of acres. He went to court to keep his black slaves in lifetime bondage. He won his case, becoming one of America’s first slave owners.

By the way, did I mention that Anthony Johnson was also Black? Let that thought sink in for a moment.

This probably will come as a shock to many, but the history of racism in America is a rather sticky affair involving more than just the white race. Just prior to the American Civil War, 43 percent of free Black households in South Carolina owned Black slaves as did 40 percent in Louisiana, 26 percent in Mississippi, 25 percent in Alabama, and 20 percent in Georgia. Native Americans also owned Black slaves. According to the 1860 census, in the Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw and Cherokee tribes, one out of every eight persons counted in the Indian census was a Black slave! Indian slavery of other Indians was also a common practice of that day.

The truth of our history reveals that racism is a sin issue that has infected us all. Not a single race is exempt. We are all guilty!

The answer does not rest in dredging up past offenses, wagging the finger in each other’s faces or demanding a change in each other’s thinking. These tactics never work. Think of all the destruction to life and property over the course of these past several weeks. Has this produced any real change in anybody? Not really. People have just coalesced a little bit tighter into their own particular corners.

What about financial reparations? Who would you pay them to? How could you really know the descendants of who owned slaves and who did not? Reparations is a foolish suggestion based entirely on greed. It’s not meant to solve the problem, only exacerbate it.

Genuine reconciliation between the races in this country must begin with genuine repentance before Almighty God. Repentance means confessing to God my own sins and the sins of my forefathers. Then I invite God into my life to receive His forgiveness, His love, His healing, and His perspective on my situation.

If we all could just grasp this one truth, what a difference this would make in our communities! Having God in your life changes everything! Only a personal relationship with the Father through Jesus Christ will bring an end to racism in America.

So what’s stopping you?

Chaplain Steve Green,

Butler