I’m coming to this one a little late, but for those of you who haven’t heard, the Christian ministry Youth Specialties was in the news recently after it published what they later realized was a “racist” skit in a new book for youth groups. The good thing about this unfortunate incident is that, after being confronted on it, Youth Specialties immediately issued an apology and took actions to make things right. (Please read the entire apology; it’s powerful stuff!)
You can trace the full course of events at my friend Soong-Chan Rah’s blog. In fact, it was Soong-Chan who boldly brought the matter to the attention of Youth Specialties and the book’s co-publisher, Zondervan.
Those of you who’ve read my book will recall that Soong-Chan found himself in the middle of a similar controversy involving another Christian organization’s publication of materials featuring offensive Asian stereotypes. In that case, the ministry would not budge (it, apparently, had invested too much money to apologize and recall the product). In this current situation, however, the offending organization does take steps to correct its error. And I believe it’s a model of true humility, grace, and justice that all Christian institutions and individuals can learn from. Reconciliation is never cheap.
I think, as you said, Youth Specialties showed true humility in their response! Praise the Lord!!! This post reminded me of Virginia’s “regret for slavery” – what are your thoughts on that?
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/02/25/america/NA-GEN-US-Slavery-Apology.php
B”H
Hey Ed,
Yikes and Wow!! I just spent about the past hour and a half reading through the original apology and then about half of the comments on the Youth Specialities blog site. I highly commend Mark O. for his honesty, timeliness and thoroughness. His reaction to this incident should serve as a template for humility and true repentance. Thank you for bringing this to my attention as I was completely unaware of it.
This is the type of loving care we need to exhibit towards one another if we are truly serious about seeing GOD’s kingdom “here on earth as it is in heaven.”
Blessings,
Shlomo
Shawnda,
Thanks for your comment. Virginia’s recent apology for its role in slavery and its segregationist past, as well as its wrongs against Native Americans, offered a remarkable example for other states. While I would stop short of calling for something like reparations (since I don’t see a practical way something like that could be accomplished), I do feel it’s important for individuals, institutions, and even governments to acknowledge their past sins and injustices and, where possible, make amends (I think Matt. 5:23-24 suggests a biblical call for this).
Here’s the thing: If we proudly celebrate the great stuff about our institutional histories, then I believe we also need to have the integrity and courage to acknowledge and reckon with the dark aspects of those legacies. Much of the strong economic foundation that our nation enjoys came through the free labor provided by the slave trade. This is a historical fact. As a nation, have we really reckoned with this? I think the civil rights movement and some of the laws that it inspired began addressing this, but there’s still a lot of damage out there.
I don’t think more government programs are the final solution–there is definitely a need for more personal responsibility to be taken in many black communities today. Nevertheless, it’s hard to deny the negative effect that years of slavery and legalized segregation have had on the educational and economic realities of African Americans in this day and age, and this needs to be taken into account seriously when our leaders talk about cutting public-school funding or reversing affirmative action programs.
So, yes; I think the symbolic act of Virginia’s apology for its racist past is significant. It carries meaning both because it’s the right thing to do, and because it models a tangible expression of what true repentance and humility could look like for other institutions. Hopefully, though, the apology will move beyond symbolism to something real that’s reflected in policy, legislation, and personal behavior–like what Youth Specialties and Zondervan did when informed of their error. To be real, it must leave the realm of symbols and move into the realm of genuine justice and love.
Edward Gilbreath
Hi Edward! Thank you SO much for sharing your thoughts with me!!! I really appreciate your thoughts and heart!!! Do you mind if I post your thoughts on my blog? Thanks!
Youth Specialties did the right thing by owning up. What we need in general is to make sure organizations and people do the right thing, not out of fear of looking racist, but out of a deeper understanding of the issues. So making a mistake and owning it is good, but growth and healing will come in the long run, with slow steps.
We rabble rousers need to shed light long after the heat has faded.
As I was reading about the recent incident, I was fully reminded of the incident you recounted in your book. Funny, I hadn’t even noticed it was the same person surfacing the issue. Not funny… this stuff happens over and over in such similar ways. Apologies are good, but perhaps it’s also time for some sensitivity training?
Thanks for blogging about this, Ed. Is CT going to cover this story at all?
Al – Thank YOU for blogging about this, since I think it was on your blog where I first caught drift of this. Last I heard, CT decided not to do anything. However, my magazine will be posting an article about it on our website (www.todays-christian) in the next couple weeks. Hopefully, it will get some play on the Christianity Today homepage and in some of the corporate e-newsletters.
L.L. – Sometimes I think an episode like this one IS our sensitivity training. We have to take advantage of these unfortunate missteps to bring enlightenment and healing. Organizations usually don’t think about these types of things until a mistake is made. But, yeah, I think you and Paul are right as well when you suggest that learning must also happen apart from the fire of controversy.
Ed, why yes. I seem to remember a few powerful “real-life sensitivity-trainings” of my own. You know? Life can be a great teacher.
Good to read of your reflection on this incident. I think it is good that it has turned out for good, and I hope it’s the start of an on-going process to deal with systemic issues.
First I’ve heard of this Today’s Christian magazine. What’s that all about?
[…] in a book published by Zondervan and Youth Specialties. (For background on the story, check out my March 14 post.) As usual, Soong-Chan has some very insightful things to say about the importance of […]
Hi,
I’m curious why you thought you needed to put the word ‘racist’ in scare quotes, i.e.,
I’m coming to this one a little late,… the Christian ministry Youth Specialties was in the news recently after it published what they later realized was a “racist” skit …
Do you think the skit was inappropriately deemed racist? If so, why?
If insensitve stereotyping in cultural expression is an important issue, then ought not those people and organizations so concerned, fight the “real” fight. C’mon people take on the Chappelle Show, South Park, The Daily Show, Colbert Report……or even how about the multitude of stand up comedians who shamelessly distort and “racistly” portray their ethnicity on stages all across the country, for a few bucks and a few laughs.
Or maybe that was “Youth Specialties” real sin. Maybe their “comedy” just wasn’t funny.
Will – The quote marks were to signify that this was a word used by Youth Specialties to describe the episode. Personally, I prefer not to invoke that term, since it’s so easy for some folks to tune out a black guy when he does. I do, however, think it was an appropriate description.
Paul – I agree with you, to an extent. Those mainstream programs certainly use insensitive stereotyping as a source of humor. However, the real problem with the Youth Specialties skit was that it came from a Christian ministry. You might expect crude, racial sterotyping from secular media, but the church should be setting a better example, don’t you think? Nevertheless, the positive outcome demonstrates how Christians should be handling this type of thing. We may not have that much influence on what Comedy Central broadcasts, but we should be willing to address this sort of thing within the Christian community.
Thanks for the response, Ed and I agree entirely. Two wrongs don’t make a right. Still the gentler, by comparison, images projected by kids in youth ministry isn’t the disease, it’s the symptom.
Perhaps I’m being cynical but until the U.S. is ready to reconsider it’s commitment to a material standard as It’s measure of success, and what I see as a wholly ungodly obsession and interpretation of first amendment rights, things aren’t gonna change for the better.
Edward,
Thanks for the clarification.
[…] Rally fiasco in my book, Reconciliation Blues, and I blogged about Soong-Chan’s role in the Zondevan/Youth Specialities controversy a couple years ago. In addition, when I was the editor of Today’s Christian, I published an […]
[…] would’ve better anticipated the Asian community’s reaction to the book, given an earlier controversy that followed the publication of a book from its Youth Specialties branch. In that episode, […]