On Wednesday September 21, all of campus received an article from Associate Dean of Students Nesha Evans inviting all of campus to participate in a study of Dr. George Yancey’s book “On Racial Division,” which was published in March 2022, and written after the events following the death of George Floyd in the Summer of 2020. Yancey is a professor of Sociology at Baylor University and has been conducting research into issues of race relations for many years. He is a first generation college graduate and has published several books throughout his years.
Yancey’s book, “On Racial Division,” seeks to find a suitable solution for the issues of race in the United States, and, perhaps most notably, a way to facilitate conversation with people who may not look like you or think like you when it comes to racial topics. Yancey proposes an idea of mutual accountability, one which he makes a case for in his book and during his subsequent chapel and discussion. He founds his argument in his book both on empirical and biblical bases, making the argument for both non-Christians and Christians alike to implement.
The book study took place in the weeks before fall break and was an informal discussion involving both students and faculty. This provided students with the opportunity to get to know some of their professors outside of the classroom and the normally hectic pattern of school. This also gave faculty an opportunity to understand some of the ideas and backgrounds of some of their students in a way that may never have come up in a classroom setting. In all the book study groups met three times over the course of two weeks and discussed several chapters of Yancey’s book.
“On Racial Division” looks at both sides of the polarized debate on how to approach the subject of racial reconciliation, and it concludes that neither the antiracism side nor the colorblindness side has the ability to create lasting change and progress within our racialized society. This was also the subject of Yancey’s chapel talk given on October 19, 2022. During this talk he essentially gave a brief overview of the first two chapters of his book and teased the idea of a third option that might seek to carve out a realistic cooperation between all sides of the debate.
Perhaps the most notable objection that Yancey had for both sides of the argument was their lack of acknowledgment of human depravity. Particularly, the two current opposing options are entirely dependent on an idealistic form of man. Yancey stressed the importance of the fact that both options will inevitably fail because they both assume that humans can solve the issue ourselves. During the chapel luncheon on October 19, Yancey emphasized the fact that the doctrine of human depravity breeds humility in our hearts when properly understood.
This humility is the basis of Yancey’s proposed third option, or the mutual accountability option. This takes place through collaborative conversation and actively listening to other people’s differing perspectives and understanding them before engaging in any kind of discussion. This method also requires both participants to recognize that the person they may disagree with is still made in the image of God and therefore should be respected as a fellow image bearer.
On October 19, students and faculty participated in a practical application of the ideas Yancey proposed in his book. Students and faculty alike were divided into groups and given a racially charged news article to read and discuss. All of the groups contained multiple faculty members. The groups went around in a circle and discussed the article, and each person was given a chance to respond individually without anyone being allowed to interrupt or accuse them of anything regarding their response to the article. While some of the students were intimidated at first, many began to openly discuss their differing beliefs as they were encouraged by the other members of their group.
On the following Thursday, all those who participated in the collaborative conversation were invited back for a quick debrief and final thoughts on the practical application of the mutual accountability idea. This was an efficient wrap-up of all that Yancey had talked about so far, but unfortunately, only a small number of the student body came to this final summation because the Chapel department decided to schedule a second event—a public reading of scripture—at the same time.
Many of the students who were able to participate in the discussion and the collaborative workshop expressed positive impressions from the perspective that Yancey gave. Some even expressed disappointment at the overall small number of students who participated in the many facets of the series. In all, there were only 13 students who participated in the book discussion. While there were many more who participated in the collaborative workshop, only a small percentage were there by their own volition as a few Community Development classes were required to attend the workshop.
In the end, Yancey’s short series at Covenant was a useful and informative time for students to reflect on the way that they approach the topic of racial reconciliation and consider a different approach. An approach rooted in biblical teaching and doctrine. An approach with the central goal of building community, rather than changing anyone’s mind. An approach that centers around finding solutions, not accusations.