A World of Turmoil

Samantha Marvel, Deacon
June 2020

St. Pete is a wonderful city in so many way but it is still has its issues and they are substantial. I grew up in the Pink streets in south St. Pete and a lot of times, people would not come visit us because they had to go through the “bad parts of town”… that was 20 years ago. 

This weekend, I got my hair cut. I told my hairdresser that I lived on Coquina Key and was told to be careful going around there at night. I smiled and nodded, but that could have been a place to speak up.

The south side of St. Pete has a stigma around it because of old system racism that hasn’t changed. Things in this city have changed, but not enough. I see racism everyday in the grocery store people choose to go to or the schools kids are zoned for and especially in the medical field. Pastor Adam even tells me that many people that he tells about the church are excited about our mission and vision until he tells them about our commitment to racial justice. It’s not that they’re antagonistic, it’s just that they’re more excited about other parts – whiter parts – of our church’s mission. How do we expect equality if our government, schools, medical system, and even our churches are bound up in racial discrimination?

Help comes in all kind of ways: physical, monetary, educational – vote for people who will make these changes and support organizations that have made commitments to structural change. Volunteer, protest, march – or have quiet conversations with friends who don’t understand. But don’t just stand by, do something.