Beauty in the Brokenness

At the conclusion of the Chicago Justice Conference, Tony Campolo beautifully challenged those present with a question: “What does it look like for peace to break out in this city?” After hours of being inspired by various speakers fighting injustice of all kinds, but especially pushing for racial reconciliation, my group and I set out on foot to experience the city of Chicago before heading home.
Arriving at the famous Millennium Park, we observed that it was exploding with unusual activity. Weary and slightly confused, a few of us made our way towards the commotion under the Jay Pritzker Pavilion. I looked out over a railing to see a crowd of thousands of African American people gathered together worshipping, singing, dancing and praying desperately for peace to fill the city. Intrigued, we excitedly joined in. However, I was immediately overcome with a palpable discomfort. I was the only Caucasian person in my sight. Feeling uneasy but also strangely accepted and welcomed, I turned to my two classmates next to me, both African Americans, and was compelled to ask, “Is this feeling of isolation I’m experiencing right now how you feel all the time?” I became very emotional when they responded “Yes, but we are used to it.” My sentiments in that moment caused me to go out of my way to offer an apology and a hug to the strangers next to me. I had learned the most important lesson about racial injustice. Its not what I had done to heighten the issue, its what I hadn’t done to relieve the oppression. Suddenly every session I sat through made sense. I could empathize with African American people. Experiencing being the minority for the first time in my life completely altered my view on racism in the United States.