Rev. Dr. Cynthia Ramirez Lindenmeyer 25 July 2020
Sacred Activism Community
False narratives are the historical pebbles reverberating in our present day. Sacred activism calls for courage to awaken and begin anew. On this day seventy-nine years ago, a mother gave birth to a baby whose life would end fourteen years later when law favored the testimony of someone based upon the color of their skin. Carolyn Bryant, allegedly forced by her abusive husband, exaggerated an accusation that led to one of the most gruesome lynchings in America’s history. All involved in the execution of Emmett Till escaped justice.
False narratives murder our soul, for we lose the truth of who we are, then become stuck living in fear imprisoned by an implied script. When we succumb to the narratives dictated by powerful institutions, addictions tempt us to replace the search for joy with numbness. COVID-19 is our present-day epic reckoning. Asking uncomfortable questions (do we defund the police, do we take down Confederate monuments, do we ask teachers to endanger themselves) that challenge the narratives of powerful American structures is very painful and creates massive conflict, but necessary for individual and national enlightenment.
Sacred activists realize joy comes when freedom from false narratives transfigures the fabricated avatars that market a false-self. This present-day reckoning offers a force of transformation that can break us free from past false historical myths and usher in unprecedented healing and reconciliation. It starts with the individual.
Born in Alabama and schooled in Houston, I was thrilled when my unit in the 82nd Airborne went on a Staff Ride to Gettysburg, where I bought a painting entitled “Moment of Decision” that depicts Generals Lee and Longstreet deliberating on July 1st, 1863. Over 20 years this portrait has been displayed in my home. No more. What “monuments” do you embrace that perpetuate false narratives?
