Trigger warning- some words used in the following talk may be sensitive to some individuals.
This talk contains themes of grief, war, genocide, violence, murder, self harm and death.
Sensitive individuals have the option to leave at this time or any time during the talk, no
questions asked and no judgement. You also have the option to return if a breath of fresh air is
what is needed.
Honoring Allyship, Laurie Carleton and the Rise of Christian Nationalism in America
Okay, this might sound silly but please follow along. I would first like to invite everyone to stand
, take 3 deep breaths with me, shake your arms, your legs, your body, and then greet the people
next to you. Maybe, share with each other your name and why you’re here.
I would first like to Thank the Mountain Bears Democratic Club for inviting me to speak, giving
me a platform and for your continued allyship. I would also like to thank all of you for being
here. For having open hearts and ears to listen.
You may be asking yourself, who is this person standing before me? What credentials does she
have and why are we really here?
Well, to be honest, I don’t have any scholarly, or legal credentials on the subject matter and no
background in theology. I stand before you as a mother, concerned community member, friend,
peacebuilder and human. Someone that would like to see a community united in peace and
awareness. I’m just a Chef and local business owner. I’m not here to debate theology, politics,
rightness or wrongness but I have been on the front lines of this community every day for the
last 7 years, during which, incredible social change has occurred and experienced that first
hand. I have witnessed horrible, unthinkable violence in this community as well as blindingly
beautiful and uplifting change.
I believe we all have our own personal and spiritual paths and that is between us and Creator,
God, Source, Allah or by whatever name you choose to call them. It is not my place to judge you
and in return, not your place to judge me. As a wise friend once told me, and I believe to be true
that, “All prayers go to the same place.”
I’m here to speak to you heart to heart. To encourage critical thought, open minds and
understanding hearts and to raise awareness. To, maybe connect the dots between the rise of
divisiveness in our community, our country and around the world so we have the informed
choice to be united or remain divided.
I would like to ask you the questions, to keep in mind during this and the time ahead:
1. What legacies do we want to leave to the next generations? Peace or war? Other-ness or
together-ness? Force and fear or love and acceptance? Religious freedom and inclusion or
forceful conversion and deadly exclusion? Among a million different people we will have a
million different viewpoints. That’s just fact
2. Do we want to continue to play roles in the same, timeless cycles of genocide, erasure,
conquer, destroy, force, domination and control? Or are we here to break these harmful cycles
that have ruled dominant thought for centuries and learn to build a better world?
3. Aren’t we tired of making existence hard for each other yet, killing each other yet?
4. Aren’t we tired of putting each other in dehumanizing and reductive boxes that reduce our
common humanity or are we ready to see that we are all beautiful, unique creations with our
own individual gifts to share with the world?
Blue, red, black, brown, gay, straight… if these labels aren’t being used to understand, uplift
and celebrate, throw them away!
.
There is far more that unites us than divides us!
Who and what is behind the current social division? What are their goals? Let’s get into it.
Who is behind the current rise in divisiveness in the U.S.?
The rise of the Christian Nationalist movement into mainstream politics backed by billionaires
that control our social media, news outlets, and now, are at the highest offices, threatening our
government, democracy, freedom of religion and peace! Their narratives instill fear and blind
hatred for those they consider “others” and will, no doubt, Usher in the next Civil War or
apocalypse they seek to prove their world view of the end times and the return of Christ correct
if we remain unaware and silent.
“This is a Christian Supremacist political ideology rooted in bigotry-not the Bible.”
“it’s not a grassroots uprising but a deliberate strategy led by elites who reframe religion to
serve political ends. Christian Nationalism is the most serious attempt to overthrow the
American Constitutional system since the Civil War.” -Katherine Stewart
“A distortion of the gospel of Jesus and a threat to American democracy”- Christians Against
Christian Nationalism.
Please do not confuse all Christians with being Christian Nationalist. They are not and true
Christians reflect and follow Christ which is far from what is described here. But I do urge you
to not follow National trends or repeat mainstream pastoral messages because you may be
playing into their hands. Unknowingly spreading their messages and upholding their beliefs.
Think about how your similarities in beliefs and fears could be being co-opted by the Christian
Nationalist movement to push deadly agendas that harm women, people of color, those of
other faith traditions and all “others” in our society that are non-dominant?
A call to people of faith… push back! Do not allow yourselves to be manipulated. Do not allow
the blasphemy and distortion of your faith to harm others.
Our country is founded on Religious freedom! We need you as allies to live your faith, help us in
uniting the community. Let’s find common ground and work together for peace!
Similar to the way true Christianity is now being co-opted by Christan Nationalists, the LGBTQ+
people have been reduced simply to our sexuality, seeking to strip us of our spirituality and
common humanity, but like you, we are mothers, brothers, sisters, friends, caretakers and
friends. We have families and just like all “others” in society, we have become the scapegoats
while the real villains are in power, distracting us with divisiveness, pocketing our future and
our survival, siphoning tremendous wealth from the American People, while pointing the blame
everywhere else.
Please check out: the New Apostolic Reformation Movement as it connects to recent key
political connections in the White House and Washington D.C.
Before you use the Bible as a weapon, use it as a mirror. -Bindy Kays
A friend came to me the other day and pointed out the connection between the word “Ally” and
it’s usage in war. This thought gave me pause, so I looked at it.
.
Etymology of the word “ally” comes from middle English “allien” meaning unite, and from early
French “alier” same meaning, derived from Latin “alligare” to bind to as in ligament or join
together in marriage. To unite or form a connection between.
Modern Definition-Allyship – the continuous practice of supporting, uplifting, and advocating
for a marginalized or mistreated group by someone who does not belong to that group… Key
Concepts: Action over title: Allyship is treated as an active verb rather than a static label. You
“do” allyship through ongoing behavior.
.
Using privilege: It involves using personal power, social standing, or institutional privilege to
support others.
.
Listening first: True allyship requires listening to the needs of the affected community instead
of assuming what they need.
.
Military Alliance- a formal agreement between two or more states for mutual support in case of
war.
.
While the question of the roots of the word allyship made me pause to think, The honest truth
is, we are under attack, there is a war being waged against innocent people just trying to exist
without violence and we need your help and awareness.
.
Othering- when others are blamed for the woes of society, it takes the responsibility and
personal power of change away from us. But we must be the change. Find common ground and
find ways to work together. Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, poor
people, Women, … all “others” have been targets for centuries with genocide, erasure,
impossible hurdles to survival, placed in dehumanizing and reductive boxes, and if those boxes
do not serve to understand, uplift and celebrate… FFS throw them away!
.
Suicide rates among LGBTQ+ youth- over 1.8 million (about half, ages 13-24) seriously consider
or attempt suicide every year. Why? Look in your own backyards. How do you use your faith to
turn away from love? Do you use your faith as a weapon? In our own community in 2024 two
transgendered youth took their own lives.
.
Earlier today, Venerable Bhikku Pannakara graciously accepted the World Peace Award in
Stockholm Sweden this week. The journey of these monks has been an inspiration to me I
would like to read you an excerpt now.
“Respected Maha Sangha, faith leaders, professors, scholars, government officials, and
everyone here.
.
Today I stand before you with deep gratitude, receiving the World Peace Award here in
Stockholm, is a great honor. I accept it with humility, not as something belonging to me alone,
but as recognition of every person who still believes that peace is possible and is willing to work
for it.
.
For 112 days, we walked approximately 2,300 miles or 3,700 km. Peace cannot be handed from
one person to another. It cannot be purchased with money, received through an award, or
imposed by force. We may pray for it and speak about it, but unless we learn to care for the
anger, fear, and sorrow within ourselves, peace will remain only a beautiful word.
If a person is hungry, watching someone else eat will not remove their hunger. In the same way,
listening to others speak about peace will not bring peace into our hearts unless we practice it
ourselves.
.
Every person wants to live without fear. Every parent wants a safe future for their children. Every
child deserves to grow up without being taught to hate someone they have never met.
Across America, I met with so many people from different bases, languages, religions, and
political beliefs. I saw the same human heart. That heart can be wounded, but it can also be
healed. It can hold anger, but it can learn forgiveness. It can become divided by fear, but it can
return to compassion.
.
Our world moves very fast. Information reaches us within a second, but understanding often
arrives too late. We react before we listen. We judge before we know the whole story. We speak
while anger is still burning, and our words travel further than we ever intended.
A war begins long before the first weapon is fired. It begins when fear is allowed to grow without
understanding. It begins when we stop seeing the humanity of those who are different from us.
It begins when another person becomes only a laborer, an enemy, or an obstacle.
The same pattern can begin in our homes and communities. Every harsh word adds something
to the world. Every act of patience adds something to peace. Peace is not only the work of
presidents, diplomats, religious leaders, or international organizations. It is also decided at the
dinner table, in the classroom, at the workplace, and in the moment when we choose to enter
anger with more anger.
.
Peace does not require everyone to think alike. It asks us to remember that disagreement does
not remove another person’s human worth. It is easy to speak about peace among people who
already agree with us. The true work begins when we meet someone whose beliefs are very
different from our own. Can we listen without preparing an attack? Can we disagree without
humiliation? Can we protect our convictions without treating another person as an enemy?
Those of us who speak about peace also must examine ourselves. We cannot call for harmony
in public while creating division in private. We cannot ask nations to forgive while refusing to
forgive within our own families and communities.
.
We cannot expect society to become kinder if our own words continue to carry anger and
contempt. Peace begins within us, but it cannot remain there. Inner peace must become
compassionate action. It must feed the hungry, comfort the grieving, protect children, care for
animals, welcome the stranger, and stand beside those who feel forgotten. A peaceful heart
does not withdraw from the suffering of the world. It enters that suffering without adding more
hatred to it.
…peace cannot live only in ceremonies, conference rooms, or official declarations. It must
enter our daily lives. It must guide how we speak, how we lead, how we treat other people when
no one is watching.
Today, I ask each person here to make one quiet commitment: do not wait for someone else to
begin. Choose one place in your life where peace has been missing, and take one honest step
towards it. A single step may not carry us across the nation, but without that first step, no one
crossed the road. One voice may not end the war, but it can prevent hatred from entering
another part. One act of compassion may seem small, but to the person who receives it, that
act may change everything.
May those living in war find safety. May those separated from their families be reunited. May
those carrying hatred find the courage to put it down. May those who have lost hope find a
reason to begin again. May every child inherit a world in which differences do not become a
reason for violence. ”
Peace is not someone else’s responsibility. Peace is not a dream for another time. Peace
begins here. Peace begins now. Peace begins within each of us.
This talk is dedicated to Lauri Carleton, who’s life was taken on August 18, 2023 by a young
man who’s heart and mind was twisted by hate and held Christian Nationalist, anti LGBTQ+,
and antisemitic beliefs.
We are the evil and the good in this world! We are the problem and we are the solution! I believe
we, as Americans are at a critical tipping point. I encourage you all to take one small step, have
one conversation with someone that may hold different world views than you, not about
politics or subjects you know you may not see eye-to-eye on, but human to human, heart to
heart, neighbor to neighbor. This is one thing we can all do.
I, like these monks, want to build peace in this world… How about you?
Bev Eskew
Sources:
GPAHE (Global Project Against Hate and Extremism)
www.global extremism.org
Article title: “Faith as a Weapon: 10 Alarming Truths About the Rise of Christian Nationalism in
America”
Www.christiansagainstchristiannationalism.org
www.thetrevorproject.org
www.npr.org
Article title: “Tracing the rise of Christian nationalism, from Trump to the Ala. Supreme Court”
February 29, 20241:31 PM ET
Fresh Air
Terry Gross
