Even though it’s been over a month since my return from Kenya, I’m still feeling the experience in a profound way. I couldn’t help but connect the poverty that I saw and specifically the issues of African children and youth in some of the areas of Kenya with African-American children and youth in many of our inner cities in the United States. I struggled in explaining clearly to my European-American brothers on the trip with me what I was experiencing. I had similar feelings when I visited South Africa in the summer of 2001.
I believe there is a deep connection between issues facing African children and youth and African-American children and youth. For some reason though, many evangelicals have developed a deep sensitivity and compassion for African children and youth, but not as much for African-American children and youth. I know that this is a broad statement and that I must give room for the exception. I guess what I’m trying to say is that it’s harder to get large suburban evangelical churches to become just as passionate about dealing with issues of poverty and brokenness in Oakland, Detroit, or North Minneapolis as they are about it in Kenya or the Congo.
Now don’t get me wrong, I understand that there is an extreme poverty that exists in parts of Africa that no poverty in the United States can be compared to. But even with this fact, there are still issues within inner cities of the United States that call for the same passionate action as is evident in parts of Africa. It’s not an either or issue; it’s a both, and.
I think part of the issue is that many evangelicals see the United States as this fair and just society that provides opportunity for anyone who is willing to work for it. This is to say that if you are poor in the United States, to a large degree, you are to blame. But, because of the perceptions and views of Africa, poverty in there is somehow connected to other forces. My question is: Can the United States be the land of freedom, opportunity, and democracy and still have other forces beyond simply individual opportunity that could cause one to fall into poverty? I think the recent economic crisis in our nation proves this to be true. Many hard working and educated Americans have lost their jobs and homes despite in many ways doing the right thing. There are some who have lost their homes because they were given a home loan that they really should have never received, but there are many others who are victims of the other forces.
I came back to America with an even deeper passion to work to see the Christian church have a biblical and broad ministry strategy to address the poverty impacting both African and African-American children and youth.
