Healing the Racial Divide -- A Bahá'í Approach

Extracts from Letters Written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to Individual Believers in the United States on the Topic of Achieving Race Unity

Letter from the National Spiritual Assembly

The Bahá’ís of the United States join our fellow-citizens in heartfelt grief at the deaths
of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many others whose lives were
suddenly taken by appalling acts of violence. These heartbreaking violations against
fellow human beings, due only to the color of their skin, have deepened the dismay
caused by a pandemic whose consequences to the health and livelihoods of people of
color have been disproportionately severe. This has come to pass against a backdrop of
longstanding racial injustice in virtually every aspect of American life. It is clear that
racial prejudice is the most vital and challenging issue we face as a country.
Yet, amidst these tragedies, there are also signs of hope. Countless citizens have arisen
to proclaim the truth that we are one nation, and to demand specific actions to address
the pervasive inequities that for too long have shaped our society. We have
remembered who we aspire to be as a people, and are determined to make a change for
the better. This moment beckons us to a renewed commitment to realize the ideal of
E Pluribus Unum—out of many, one—the very ideal upon which America was founded.
To create a just society begins with recognition of the fundamental truth that humanity
is one. But it is not enough simply to believe this in our hearts. It creates the moral
imperative to act, and to view all aspects of our personal, social, and institutional lives
through the lens of justice. It implies a reordering of our society more profound than
anything we have yet achieved. And it requires the participation of Americans of every
race and background, for it is only through such inclusive participation that new moral
and social directions can emerge.

Whatever immediate results might come from the current demonstrations, the
elimination of racism will require a sustained and concerted effort. It is one thing to
protest against particular forms of injustice. It is a far more profound challenge to
create a new framework for justice. Our efforts can only succeed when we learn to build
relationships with each other based on sincere friendship, regard, and trust, which, in
turn, become pillars for the activities of our institutions and communities.
It is essential for us to join hands in a process of learning how to create models of what
we want to see in every dimension of American life, as we learn to apply the principle of
oneness through practical engagement and experience. To this end, we offer the
following thoughts.

An essential element of the process will be honest and truthful discourse about current
conditions and their causes, and understanding, in particular, the deeply entrenched
notions of anti-Blackness that pervade our society. We must build the capacity to truly
hear and acknowledge the voices of those who have directly suffered from the effects of
racism. This capacity should manifest itself in our schools, the media, and other civic
arenas, as well as in our work and personal relations. This should not end with words,
but lead to meaningful, constructive action.

There are already significant efforts underway to learn how to create models of unity in
neighborhoods and communities throughout the nation. Bahá’ís have been persistently
engaged in such efforts for many years. The aim is not unity in sameness—it is unity in
diversity. It is the recognition that everyone in this land has a part to play in
contributing to the betterment of society, and that true prosperity, material and
spiritual, will be available to us all to the degree that we live up to this standard. We
should earnestly discover what is being done, what truly helps to make a difference, and
why. We should share this knowledge throughout the country as a means of inspiring
and assisting the work of others. If we do this, we could soon find ourselves in the midst
of a mass transition toward racial justice.

Religion, an enduring source of insight concerning human purpose and action, has a
key role to play in this process. All faith communities recognize that we are essentially
spiritual beings. All proclaim some version of the “Golden Rule”—to love others as we
do ourselves. Take, for example, the following passage from the Bahá’í Scriptures in
which God addresses humankind:

Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one
should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye
were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is
incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with
the same mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by
your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment
may be made manifest.

To understand and firmly believe that we are all children of God provides us with access
to vast spiritual resources, motivating us to see beyond ourselves and to work steadily
and sacrificially in the face of all obstacles. It helps to ensure that the process is
consistent with the goal to create communities characterized by justice. It gives us the
faith, strength, and creativity to transform our own hearts, as we also work for the
transformation of society.

We believe that the tribulations now encompassing much of the world are the
symptoms of humanity’s failure to understand and embrace our essential oneness.
The interrelated threats of climate change, gender discrimination, extreme wealth and
poverty, unfair distribution of resources, and the like, all stem from this deficiency and
can never be resolved if we do not awaken to our dependence upon each other. The
world has contracted to a neighborhood, and it is important to appreciate that what we
do in America impacts not only our own country, but the entire planet.
We should also never forget that the richness of our diversity, and our founding ideals
of liberty and justice, attract the eyes of the world to us. They will be influenced by what
we achieve, or fail to achieve, in this regard. It is not an exaggeration to say that the
cause of world peace is linked to our success in resolving the issue of racial injustice.

The oneness of humanity is the foundation of our future. Its realization is the inevitable
next stage in our life on this planet. We will replace a world society based upon
competition and conflict, and driven by rampant materialism, with one founded upon
our higher potential for collaboration and reciprocity. This achievement will mark the
universal coming of age of the human race. How soon we achieve this, and how easily,
will depend upon the commitment we demonstrate to this cardinal principle.
We have come to a moment of great public awareness and rejection of injustice. Let us
not lose this opportunity. Will we commit to the process of forming “a more perfect
union”? Will we be guided by “the better angels of our nature” to choose the course of
wisdom, of courage, and of unity? Will we choose to truly become that “city upon a hill”
to serve as inspiration to all humanity? Let us then join hands with each other in
commitment to the path of justice. Together we can surely achieve this.
Bahá’u’lláh said: “So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth.”
May that light grow brighter with every passing day.

NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF
THE BAHÁ’ÍS OF THE UNITED STATES

دوستان عزیز، الله ابهی

محفل محلّی آستین بدین وسیله شما احبّای عزیز را تشویق می‌نماید که، به خاطر شیوع ویروس کرونا، حتّی المقدور به دستورِ «ماندن در منزل» که مقاماتِ شهر آستین صادر کرده‌اند را رعایت فرمایید. اگرچه شرایط کنونی سخت است، ولی محفل ملّی به ما امید داده‌اند که «شاید بسیاری از گرفتاری‌ها و محرومیّت‌هایی که مردم جهان با آن رو به رو شده‌اند، به رغم سختی و جانکاهی آن، عالم انسانی را به درک وحدت اصلی خود آگاه گردانَد و به نیازی که همۀ مردمان به ایجادِ پیوند با دیگران و خدمت به آنان دارند، واقف سازد.»

برای سلامتی یکایک شما عزیزان دعا می‌کنیم.

با مهر و محبت،

محفل محلّی بهائیان آستین

Dear Friends:

This is a reminder to stay home and stay safe. The National Spiritual Assembly said that we need to be “Mindful of the necessary restrictions in place, careful of your own health and that of others,” so the Assembly encourages everyone to continue to stay strong under the current circumstances, and obey the stay at home orders issued by the city of Austin. Although it is difficult, the National Assembly gave us hope that “the many hardships and privations now being faced throughout the world, difficult and painful as they are, will awaken humanity to a greater realization of its fundamental oneness, and to the need we all have to form bonds of love and service with others.”

You are all in our prayers.

With loving Baha’i greetings,

The Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Austin

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