Woke Righteousness

As the meeting began, the chair solemnly opened with righteousness, “I think it is important we remember that we are meeting on stolen land.” Unfortunately, it set no tone for the meeting nor was mentioned again. No matter how somberly we can say them, they are just words. We could analyze how many times the land was stolen by whom and for what reasons. If we want restorative justice, we take into account what would it mean to make amends for the injustice that persists. Acknowledging problems without looking for solutions is a vain task. You may as well be chasing after the wind.

Appearance of Righteousness

I do not live or work among a community of Native Americans. Where I live there are still people who recall how the US government took their homes not once but twice. First, the Tennessee Valley Authority flooded to town of Loyston. Many of the former residents were moved to Robertsville, Tennessee. You will not find that town any more either. It was renamed when it became a government compound as part of the Manhattan Project. We now call  it Oak Ridge. The government pushed one people out to make way for others. It pushed more out to industrialize the area. Then they push people out to build weapons of mass destruction. Oh, and one county over, they moved other people out to make the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Why was the land stolen? Ostensibly, for the common good. But the good is not common to all. We can piously say it is all terrible and should never happen again. But what keeps it from happening again? Is this the woke version of “thoughts and prayers?” It is the appearance of righteousness.

The Benefits

We should fairly assess the benefits from these moves.

1. I have always enjoyed the GSMNP. The traffic can be terrible. But nothing else about the place is.
2. My mother remembers when she got electricity for the first time. Wiring electricity to every home was part of the TVA bill.
3. For many years the quality of local schools increased.
4. Better infrastructure helped the quality of life of nearby residents.
5. Electricity is cheaper here than in most other regions of the country.

Righteousness?

The public goods I describe attract many people to our communities. But they came at a terrible price. While some families developed a distrust of the government in the founding of TVA, the GSMNP, and the development of Nuclear bombs and energy, the worst example is the Trail of Tears. And to the minds of many of our ancestors, it was God’s will that they steal it. Good church people supported it. Andrew Jackson is the most honored person in our State capitol.

Where is the true justice and righteousness that those of us who are woke to the problem should deliver? It is hard to say. Can any amount of reparations be made or paid? Our government continues this land stealing today. Dick Cheney talked about invading Iraq and taking the oil to pay for the invasion. What is this but the same thing? Consider too the decisions taken to build infrastructure among the poor who will not use it. I understand the frustration of people wishing to “burn it all down.” But destroyers are rarely builders. I would rather rebuild than destroy.

Toward Justice

Some people call me woke or a social justice warrior. But I do not accept woke righteousness. If something should be done, talking about it should have the goal of doing it. Acknowledging sin is only part of confession, repentance, and pardon. The fact is I am often called woke by many who I think could help solve the problem – in this case stolen land. Can we return ancestral lands without creating a bigger problem? Not likely. Yet, repentance is a change of action. How should Christians change our actions?

A few days prior to the meeting, I heard the hymn Amazing Grace sung in the Cherokee language by Cherokee women at a remembrance reception for a mutual friend. The two events made me think out loud about the approaches we should take toward calling for repentance and making restitution. We acknowledge the problem. Do we dare ask forgiveness while making it clear we do not expect it? Forgiveness should not be required before we change our actions. Now what do actions do we change.

1. Share the benefits that have come at their expense.
2. Rebuild infrastructure in a way that makes its use more accessible to those now being deprived of it.
3. Churches should revitalize Peace and Justice ministries by reforming the areas of work to these goals.