Racial Justice for the Long Haul - by Christine Jeske (Paperback)

About the Book

"Enduring Hope: Ethnographic Insights into Long-Term Racial Justice Advocacy. Many White Christians feel convicted when they hear of racial injustice but aren't sure what they can do. They often become overwhelmed by deep divisions, conflicting priorities, and historical burdens. They need a clearer vision for engagement with racial justice and reconciliation that goes beyond easy answers or simplistic optimism. Isn't there anyone who has found a way forward? Anthropologist Christine Jeske has studied precisely this question. Her one-of-a-kind research started by asking people of color about their work and experience with White advocates of racial justice. She then studied the postures, ideas, and actions of those they recommended as positive examples. In Racial Justice for the Long Haul, Jeske presents her findings on what makes for an effective, enduring approach, revealing shared threads in the lives of White Christians who have faithfully embraced the call to advocate for justice. By abandoning simplistic answers and confronting the depths of suffering and injustice, they discover a bold way of hope that perseveres. This book features a unique methodology of interviews with Christian leaders of color and White advocates, makes qualitative ethnographic research accessible, and provides concrete examples of how White Christians can grow-and persist-in working for racial justice. This book invites readers to engage deeply, reflect thoughtfully, and grow authentically as allies in the work of racial justice. White Christians must learn the nature of true hope as they encounter the depths of injustice and of lament-and of grace. Racial Justice for the Long Haul offers the clarity, inspiration, and tools needed to persevere in the pursuit of a more just world"-- Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

Enduring Hope: Ethnographic Insights into Long-Term Racial Justice Advocacy

Many White Christians feel convicted when they hear of racial injustice but aren't sure what they can do. They often become overwhelmed by deep divisions, conflicting priorities, and historical burdens. They need a clearer vision for engagement with racial justice and reconciliation that goes beyond easy answers or simplistic optimism. Isn't there anyone who has found a way forward?

Anthropologist Christine Jeske has studied precisely this question. Her one-of-a-kind research started by asking people of color about their work and experience with White advocates of racial justice. She then studied the postures, ideas, and actions of those they recommended as positive examples.

In Racial Justice for the Long Haul, Jeske presents her findings on what makes for an effective, enduring approach, revealing shared threads in the lives of White Christians who have faithfully embraced the call to advocate for justice. By abandoning simplistic answers and confronting the depths of suffering and injustice, they discover a bold way of hope that perseveres. This book

• features a unique methodology of interviews with Christian leaders of color and White advocates
• makes qualitative ethnographic research accessible, and
• provides concrete examples of how White Christians can grow--and persist--in working for racial justice.

This book invites readers to engage deeply, reflect thoughtfully, and grow authentically as allies in the work of racial justice. White Christians must learn the nature of true hope as they encounter the depths of injustice and of lament--and of grace. Racial Justice for the Long Haul offers the clarity, inspiration, and tools needed to persevere in the pursuit of a more just world.

Review Quotes

"Racial Justice for the Long Haul is a pathbreaking work of scholarship which examines the possibilities and challenges of racial repair. Ten years in the making, Christine Jeske's book provides in-depth analysis based on interviews and observations in the U.S. and South Africa to bring us a bracing conversation that takes us to the heart of how we hurt each other and also how we might come together to heal. This is a must-read for Christians who are committed to living with their brothers and sisters in a way that incarnates the love Christ has called us to."

--Angel Adams Parham, associate professor of sociology at the University of Virginia

"Christine Jeske's book beautifully examines the necessary multiplicities contained in any quest for justice. Simultaneously deeply personal and deeply researched, meditative and analytic, sobering and hopeful, this book lovingly and productively agitates its readers to do better."

--Hahrie Han, professor and director of the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University

"This book is both a much-needed mirror and window into the patterns of White Christianity. Offering keen, research-driven insights within a Christian frame, this book will force you to reflect on things that people often want to avoid and learn why people want to avoid them. Drawing from rigorous research, Christine Jeske outlines phenomena that will be familiar to those who have navigated White Christian spaces and offers a constructive path forward. As you read, you realize why people get stuck and what it takes to engage with racial justice for the long haul."

--Raymond Chang, president of the Asian American Christian Collaborative and executive director of the TENx10 Collaboration at Fuller Seminary

About the Author

Christine Jeske (PhD, University of Wisconsin; MBA, Eastern University) is associate professor of anthropology at Wheaton College. Prior to teaching at Wheaton, she lived and worked for a decade in Nicaragua, China, and South Africa. Jeske's books include The Laziness Myth, This Ordinary Adventure, and Into the Mud.