The table below house policy issues on policies which are voted on at the local, state, and federal level; all of which are important. The church has been taking its direction from the world and have for too long been limited to two issues neither of which addressed the disproportionate disenfranchisement of the poor and needy.
POLICIES & SCRIPTURES
The religious right has stolen the church vote for decades, being false witnesses to the gospel of good news. The Christian vote has been predicated on same sex marriage and abortion. God speaks less about same sex marriage and abortion and more about the poor.
God’s heart for the poor can be seen from Genesis to Revelations and His response to their ill treatment is sure (see table) according to Luke 4:18-19, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
TERMS & DEFINITIONS
Poor/Needy – Black and brown folks in urban areas who lack the knowledge and resources to know when they are being disparaged.
Gentrification – gentrification is a process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more affluent residents and businesses. This is a common and controversial topic in politics and in urban planning.
Homelessness – those without a home who live out in the elements.
Immigration – those seeking asylum in the US from other countries, people who are not native born.
Women’s rights – to work, to vote, to have an abortion equality with men in all aspects of life.
Living Wage – minimum wage should be high enough to ensure people can pay to eat and live for their families. This term means a livable wage, above the poverty line.
Mobilization – getting people moving in prayer toward the expected end laid out in the vision statement.
Healthcare – equitable healthcare for black and brown people not experimenting with genocidal medicines.
School to Prison Pipeline – the system of pegging black/brown boys by age 9 to determine how many prisons will be built.
Food Deserts – communities that have stores with very little to no fresh produce, only carbs and things to make the belly fat and protrude.
Redlining – how communities are zoned, zip codes, names are used to give higher rates or denial of a consumer loan.
Glass Ceiling – discrimination on the job, capped income earnings.
Voting Rights – voter suppression in many states, closing precincts in urban areas, sending shotty equipment on election day, any impediment to blacks and the poor voting.
Hunted by Police/Police Brutality – spilling innocent blood.
Healthcare – different standards for the black and the brown and the poor and the needy.