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It's really not surprising about the SBC, aka the State Religion of the Confederate States of America, the church FOUNDED to preach that slavery was"god's will." Turns out "the Righteous Gemstones" is a documentary, not a comedy.

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TC, yes, beyond the church preaching slavery was god’s will, the myth that god will protect was fed to slaves who often had to attend church on Sundays. They allowed religion but not freedom. And not good will.

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Seems as if they Force fed Christianity via "Mission" work since the church's inception. Destroyed belief systems that didn't align with their own. We knew this on an intellectual level. Perhaps the Missionaries believed in their pursuit of "G-d". Did the church consider this a religious conquest or a Land Grab? Forgive me. I'm trying to rationalize

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Missionaries keep the people quiet, soften them up so exploiters can rob natural resources.

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One more consideration about slaves attending church and a note about Reparations: for some Sunday and church was their social time, since many were mandated to attend, they might be able to be with family or friends in some way. Or plan their escape. Not being allowed to attend could be a punishment. Maybe I'm reading too many books but one thing books and film show, graphically, is the brutality and violence against the slaves even for 'kitchen slaves, cooks, nannies" for transgressions "for their own good." Occasionally there were owners who taught their slaves to read or believed they were "friends." What a complicated and tragic relationship for people kept as chattel, not as living humans with agency for their lives. And how delusional for owners to rationalize that slaves weren't human. When will we truly consider reparations? This website links to a Human Rights Watch video of the Tulsa Massacre and to information about contacting President Biden about establishing a federal Reparations Commission. And about HR Resolution 40 to establish a commission. Here's a statistic that should rattle some cages: "according to a recent Citi Group study, not addressing the racial wealth gap has cost the US economy up to $16 trillion over the past 20 years." Everyone loses in a society that accepts inequality. And Racism. https://www.hrw.org/ReparationsNow

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“White Too Long” by Robert P Jones is an interesting history.

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Another book added to my book list.

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Will check it out

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