Rev. Al Sharpton On Why The Church Remains A Pillar In The Black Community

With Easter coming on Sunday, what better time to reflect on how the Black church has been instrumental in the fight for equal rights in the United States? Rev. Al Sharpton spoke with NewsOne about the Easter holiday and the importance of the church throughout Black History. 

“I think what Easter is to us is the story itself reminds us of the sojourn of ourselves,” Rev. Al Sharpton says in the video. “We were prosecuted in many cases, and condemned and sentenced to unfair situations. The real meaning for us is that if we can get by Good Friday, Sunday’s coming.” 

Sharpton recounts how faith was a necessity for Black people after slavery ended in America. “Walk off the plantation, you’ve been enslaved for 250 years. Everything before that was dependent on the slave master,” Sharpton explains. “Now, the only thing that can help you through this is God.” 

In the years post slavery, the church became an essential congregation space within Black communities. While the purpose was, first and foremost, worship, it also served as a space for Black people to organize politically. “It was a family thing, it was a glue. Which is why many of our movements, civil rights movements and political movements, came out of the church,” Sharpton says. “The basis of Dr. [Martin Luther King’s] organization was the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.”

Throughout U.S. history, so many of our Black civil rights leaders came from the church. Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rev. Al Sharpton, and the late, great Rev. Jesse Jackson. “The reason why Black church always produced a lot of our leaders is because we were accountable to Black people,” Sharpton explains. 

Speaking personally, most of my political awakening as a youngin came not only from my mom but also from the church we attended when I was growing up. It was not uncommon for voting rights activists, state representatives, and members of Congress to come speak at the church. The church is where I saw former Attorney General Eric Holder speak and learned about the dangers of gerrymandering (information that has, sadly, served me well over the last year).

Sharpton believes that as things get more unhinged in the United States, it will ultimately drive more people back to the church. “If I could be churchy for a minute, sometimes God will let things like a Donald Trump or something like that happen that’ll force you back into understanding you gotta get back to basics.”

I mean, I have been praying significantly more as every day seems to have yet another insane development, so Sharpton may be on to something. If I ain’t got it, I’m hoping and praying God does. 

No matter how you may feel about religion, it’s impossible to deny that the Black church has been an essential pillar in the ongoing fight for Black liberation. “We went in 40 years from the back of the bus to the front of the White House. Only faith will do that,” Sharpton says.

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