In the US, AME Zion Church meeting focuses on voting initiative, new bishops
United States RNS The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church launched a get-out-the vote effort, chose new bishops and finalised the restructuring of some departments during its quadrennial meeting in late July. A bust of Martin Luther King, stands in front of the Brown AME Church in Selma, Alabama, US. PICTURE: James Kirkikis/Shutterstock. During the five-day […]
Criminal justice: Four years after George Floyd killing, police reform in US slow to follow
BIANCA FLOWERS and STEPHANIE KELLY, of Reuters, report that federal attempts at wide-ranging reform have been mostly unsuccessful…
New York City’s Mayor gets baptised in jail by Rev Al Sharpton on Good Friday
AP New York City Mayor Eric Adams marked Good Friday by receiving a jailhouse baptism from the Rev Al Sharpton, joining in on the religious rite with a group of men incarcerated at the troubled Rikers Island jail complex. The ceremony came as part of a visit to the jail complex where Adams was scheduled […]
US religious leaders to mark MLK Day with early start for 2024 voter mobilisation
United States RNS For Black church leaders and multiracial coalitions, Martin Luther King Jr Day, which falls on Monday, 15th January, less than 300 days from Election Day, has come to represent the unofficial start to voter mobilisation efforts. Plans for what would have been King’s 95th birthday are focused on overcoming increased restrictions on […]
At Tyre Nichols’ funeral in Memphis, Vice President Kamala Harris and Rev Al Sharpton among those praying and promising reform
United States RNS Tyre Nichols, the 29-year-old Black man fatally beaten by police officers after a traffic stop in Memphis, Tennessee, was mourned on Wednesday, the first day of Black History Month, in a funeral that featured messages of faith from Vice President Kamala Harris and Rev Al Sharpton. Delayed more than two hours by […]
In the US, Tyre Nichols police beating video prompts faith leaders to react with grief, goals
United States RNS Religious leaders reacted swiftly – with legislative appeals and collective grief – to the release of video footage of police officers beating Tyre Nichols, a Black man who died days after a traffic stop in Memphis, Tennessee. An image of Tyre Nichols and the words “JUSTICE FOR TYRE NICHOLS” are projected onto […]
On King’s holiday in the US, daughter calls for bold action over words
Atlanta, US AP America has honoured Martin Luther King, Jr, with a federal holiday for nearly four decades yet still hasn’t fully embraced and acted on the lessons from the slain civil rights leader, his youngest daughter said Monday. Rev Bernice King, who leads The King Center in Atlanta, said leaders – especially politicians – […]
US President Biden includes faith leaders in summit’s charge to “rise together against hate”
US United States RNS Citing the murders of a Sikh man and a Black churchgoer on the anniversaries of their killings, US President Joe Biden, at a White House summit Thursday, addressed hate-fuelled violence, committing to new and renewed measures to combat hate, including attacks aimed at people of faith. “There’s a throughline of hate, […]
In the US, Rev Al Sharpton delivers eulogy after police killing of Patrick Lyoya
RNS Rev Al Sharpton reminded mourners that Black people are created in God’s image at the funeral of 26-year-old Patrick Lyoya in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Friday. “We were created in the image of God,” Sharpton said in his eulogy on 22nd April. “When you see us, you are seeing what God put together. And […]
In the US, Rev Al Sharpton calls for justice in police killing of Valentina Orellana Peralta
Los Angeles, US RNS Rev Al Sharpton, speaking at the funeral of the 14-year-old fatally shot by a Los Angeles Police Department officer, recalled coming to Los Angeles 30 years ago to protest the beating of Rodney King by police. “We keep seeing LAPD get it wrong. And here we are again. How long will […]