Speak out for those who cannot speak,
    for the rights of all the destitute.
 Speak out; judge righteously;
    defend the rights of the poor and needy.
-Proverbs 31:8-9

Hi. Let me tell you a little about myself:

I’m white. Christian. I’m straight, by the way, and a man. Oh, and solidly in the upper middle class.

But more important is what I’m not. I’m not female, black, transgendered, a federal employee, a recipient of aid, a farmer, or an immigrant.

I guess you could call me a Dude Experiencing Invulnerability. (DEI)

Other than the price of eggs, I seem relatively untouched by all the radical changes coming down from Washington. Nobody is questioning my worth as a person, or pointing out the advantages my status affords me. Nobody’s erasing references to me from websites.

When you’re at the top of the human food chain, like I am, ideas like DEI just don’t resonate the same way. If I hunker down for the next four years, these crazy times will pass, and I’ll probably be doing fine.

Yecck. It hurts to even write that sarcastically. The truth is, each of those words, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, refer to so much more than meeting HR quotas. They speak to the heart of Christ-like living, and they are literally being painted over by our country’s leadership.

I’m hurting right now, and angry, even though I am far less vulnerable than so many others. What can someone like me do?

To start with, I can speak out.

I read Proverbs, telling us to speak out for those who can’t speak for themselves (or are being ignored!) Then I read Isaiah, who goes so far as to say:

Woe to those who make iniquitous decrees,
    who write oppressive statutes,
 to turn aside the needy from justice
    and to rob the poor of my people of their right,
to make widows their spoil
    and to plunder orphans!
-Isaiah 10:1-2

Gulp. That’s really laying it out there, Isaiah.

I can’t (or won’t) always be as blunt as Isaiah, or as wise as Proverbs, but if I am to proclaim a loving God, a compassionate savior, love for my neighbor and justice for the oppressed, how can someone like me not speak out?

Have you found your voice? Phone calls, letters, talking to coworkers, posting on social media, even marching at the capital are ways to speak out against injustice. Maybe your words will be an impetus for others to raise their voices.

Jesus said of his disciples, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.” If something as impervious as a stone can choose to make a fuss,

so can this

Defiantly
Enraged
Individual.

Have a good week,

Mitch