Black Activists Spend Too Much Time ‘Preaching to the Choir’

Have you ever heard someone say that you were “preaching to the choir”? They were implying that whatever message you were relaying was misdirected. Instead of lecturing them, they were suggesting you take said sermon to someone else who likely needed to hear it more than they did. Or, someone who was ignorant of the temerity of the message. Well, a lot of black activists are guilty of preaching to our black, homogenous choir. Myself included.

If you think about it, Black Twitter is the epitome of the “choir” in and of itself. In essence, we band together and inform one another so that we can mobilize and take action much faster. We echo the sentiments of our preachers, and we do it at an unimaginable velocity. I, personally, think that is a great thing. Folks like Justine Sacco – the white lady whose racist tweet about AIDS in Africa went viral faster than the fake Harlem Shake – probably aren’t the biggest fans of Black Twitter or our leading pastors like Brittney Cooper, Zerlina Maxwell, Goldie Taylor, Baratunde Thurston, Feminista Jones, Jamelle Bouie, Mikki Kendall, Mychal Denzel Smith, Melissa Harris-Perry, and Jamilah Lemieux. There are quite a few more, so don’t by any means take this list as exhaustive. But, where Black Twitter is a choir, I would say these folks thoroughly represent the leading church staff.

In other words, racist folks do not appreciate being blasted out by the Black Activist Mafia. Nor do they like being called on their BS. And Back Twitter is a “take no prisoners” mob. We spare no offense when it comes to detractors. But, we spend so much time attempting to convert the racists and bigots. Not to mention it can be completely exasperating trying to argue with racist fools. Here is an example of Melissa Harris-Perry trying to explain the basics of the racist undercurrent of modern social welfare programs.

See what I mean?

Why should we only reserve our activism for those in stark opposition to our endeavors (the racists) and those who look like us (you know, the choir)?

It is my belief that there are some folks who don’t look like us who actually fit the mold of many of our choir members. They may be white, Latino, Southeast Asian, or whatever else, but they get it nonetheless. I posit that we’d be more powerful, more salient, and even more intimidating if we partnered with “allies” (I’m not the biggest fan of that word but you get the point) in fighting the good fight.

And, maybe all those folks are somewhere preaching to their respective choirs too. Maybe they’ve got safe little circles – with other folks who look like them – who are receptive and welcoming to their message. So, I think it’s time we stop preaching to our own choirs and let someone else do it. In the Baptist church, we refer to this as the Sunday when we have a “guest pastor.”

In this vein, I am launching our first interview series called “Preaching to the Choir.” I am moving aside so that some guest speakers who don’t look like me, sound like me, or write like me can carry the message to the masses. Water Cooler Convos is my activist church. My husband and I are the pastors. We are inviting some non-black folks in to guest pastor for a bit so that our members can get another perspective of the message.

In this series, I am honored to present “Fear of a Brown Planet” comedian and Aussie, Aamer Rahman; writer, mom, and digital maven at the popular blog “Rage Against the Minivan“, Kristen Howerton; and poet, author, and kick-ass activist, Olivia Cole. And, a very special surprise interview to cap off this amazing series. We’ll tell you more about that later.

For now, just know, this isn’t something I do for fun. If I were looking to up my fun factor I’d make more time for playing tennis and going to the movies. This is something I do because it actually does make a difference in the lives of others. It changes minds. It fights the War on Ignorance. And I am all about that.