I mentioned in my previous post the interfaith and interracial gathering of clergy that led to yesterday’s march. Members of that group issued a letter laying out our concerns and our commitment to work for change. To my knowledge, it hasn’t received much attention from the press or social media. While the letter laid out our plans for yesterday, it went further:

While there is some internal conflict in our communities regarding the specifics of this particular incident there is broad agreement about the need to address the unjust systems laid bare in the Race to Equity Report and the Report of the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

 

The anger and frustration expressed at the death of an unarmed black male in the City of Madison at the hands of a police officer, a public servant sworn to protect and serve, is a symptom of the racial disparities in Madison and the unequal treatment of our citizens based on the color of their skin.

And this:

The death of Tony Terrel Robinson, and this city’s response to that tragedy has brought us together and we stand with the entire community demanding transparency, accountability, justice, and a response to the Letter to All Law Enforcement Agencies of Dane County from The African American Council of Churches of Greater Madison.

We also stand together as leaders of a broad coalition of faith communities demanding that we, as a community, respond in this moment to the larger issues of racial disparity that plague our community. We have come together to demand justice and we are not going to stand down until these issues have been addressed.

The complete document is available here: clergyletter

The letter from the African American Council of Churches is here: African American Council of Churches Letter