Medium 12/2
After examining the materials from the past several weeks, I have gained insight into how the criminal justice system works to bring about the destruction of African American lives. Unfortunately, many present day structural systems that hold up state and federal governments and economic systems are interconnected in the prisons, which makes their destruction even more difficult. This week’s information broadened my knowledge of how political leaders have redirected the rhetoric around justice and crime to serve certain hidden purposes, which include denying the rights of blacks.
Dubler and Llyod’s work around the political theology of mass incarceration demonstrated to me that the ideals of secularists and evangelicals represent the antithesis of those of Black Lives Matter, who more closely aligns with Dr. King and liberal Protestants. I believe one of the main divisions between these groups involves the study of eschatology. As I learn more about Black Lives Matter, their platform revolves around imagining better alternatives for the future and acting in the present to enact these sorts of changes. This is similar to the liberal Protestant imagination, which acknowledges that individuals perform justice work everyday by striving for divine justice in the future. I believe that Black Lives Matter agrees with this idea because activists work every day to imagine a better life for their community, despite the obstacles imposed upon them by society. In addition, another difference between evangelicals and Black Lives Matter includes the focus on community. While community engagement and inclusion is one of the vital aspects to the BLM platform, evangelicals center their ideas on individual morality. Lloyd points out that this personal focus makes it more difficult to imagine radical alternatives in the present and enact the type of large scale societal changes that current activists strive to make. When the needs of the group are not the top priority, I believe that it is nearly impossible to imagine transformational changes, which could explain why secularists and evangelicals support reformist strategies.
I found one of the most striking aspects of this week’s materials to be the all encompassing spotlight on harsh punishment for offenders. Time after time, punishment exists as the only means for enacting justice in society. Political rhetoric used religious and spiritual justifications that connected righteousness and justice with law enforcement, mass incarceration, and punishment. Instead of imaging new alternatives to criminal justice such as restorative justice, politicians and secularists “get rid” of the problem by locking people away. I found the video sermon of Dr. Jeffress to be extremely hypocritical, especially when he suggested that evil and bloodshed should not be repaid by more evil and bloodshed. However, in technical terms, locking someone behind bars for a crime is exactly the type of vengeance Dr. Jeffress refers to. This statement exemplifies the flaws in his logic, as he should be a proponent for healing instead of punishment.
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