May 23, 2021 - "Pentecost"

One of the Bible stories that I recall today is the story of the tower of Babel.  People scatter all over the earth because they can no longer understand each other.  At Pentecost (which we are celebrating today), the Holy Spirit leads people from all over the world together as one because now they can all understand the apostles even if each speaks a different language.  On this Pentecost Day let’s strive to overcome divisiveness by seeking understanding among people who come from different places, who seemingly speak different languages.
 
In November 2018, the Catholic Bishops of the United States (USCCB) issued a Pastoral Letter Against Racism entitled “Open Wide Our Hearts” to urge all the faithful to acknowledge “the scourge of racism” that still exists in our hearts, words, actions, and institutions.  Racism can be individual, when persons fail to recognize certain groups as created in the image of God and equal in dignity.  Racism can also be systemic.  This would be case where practices or policies treat certain groups of people unjustly.  One important systemic issue is race-based economic inequality.  I am going to devote the rest of this column for this topic. For this purpose I am making use of a background document on the USCCB website entitled “Racial Economic Inequality” that you can consult for more information.  Here is the link for that backgrounder:  racism-and-economic-inequality.pdf (usccb.org).
 
As Pope Francis wrote in his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, “Inequality is the root of social ills.” In his 2015 Congressional address, the Holy Father spoke of the economic inequality in the U.S.A.  On that occasion he challenged leaders and all Americans to work for the common good so that every individual, created in the image of God, can flourish.
 
In the United States, median wealth for white households ten times greater than for black households, and eight times greater for Hispanic households.  This is significantly larger than many Americans perceive.  Currently, Native Americans, blacks, and Hispanic experience poverty at roughly twice or more than twice the rate of whites.
 
For the typical household, two-thirds of wealth comes from housing equity, such that the wealth gap between white and black households is largely the story of work and housing policies that have created obstacles for African Americans to achieve home and land ownership for generations.  Despite the gains of the Civil Rights Movement, barriers in education, in employment, and in housing still exist today and all contribute to racial economic inequality.  For Native Americans, colonial and later U.S. policies led to loss of land, restrictions in self-government, and economic devastation and unemployment rates that remain among the highest in the country.
 
Income gaps across racial and ethnic groups have narrowed only slightly in the past few decades.  For example, lower-income African Americans made 47% as much as low-income whites in 1970 and in 2016, they made 54% as much as white counterparts.  Hispanics of all income categories actually fell further behind during this same period.

In 2017, The Harvard University Business School Review documented that hiring discrimination against African Americans has not declined in the past twenty-five years.  The 2018 annual report of the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University found a widening gap in homeownership in recent decades, with current rates at 72% for whites and 43% for blacks.  It is evident that many minority families still face challenges in achieving homeownership and economic equality.
 
Let close this column with this thought.  Pope Francis recently inscribed the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church to occur on the day after Pentecost to better focus the Church’s attention on the maternal care of the Blessed Mother for the disciples of Christ throughout the ages.  Bearing that in mind, let’s ask Mary’s help in obtaining from her Son the grace we need to overcome the evil of racism and to build a just society.
 
Until next week,
 
Fr. John Dillon
Pastor