Creation Justice Ministries Condemns Attacks on DC Churches

Sign at the United Methodist Building on Capitol Hill, location of Creation Justice Ministries' office

On December 13, white supremacist groups destroyed the "Black Lives Matter" banners of three congregations in Washington, DC: Asbury United Methodist Church, Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Luther Place. Creation Justice Ministries is a membership organization co-founded by the denominations these congregations affiliate with: the United Methodist Church, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Creation Justice Ministries Executive Director Shantha Ready Alonso said of the incidents, "As a Creation Justice community, we know the power of places and symbols that shape our collective memory. White supremacists' December 13th desecration of the three churches' signs is an act of violence that goes far beyond the destruction of property. These churches are sacred places that are integral to the Black history narrative of our country, and that continue to proclaim the precious value of Black lives in the eyes of God, and our community." 

All three churches are part of the National Park Service's national register of historic places, and share their rich history with visitors. See: Asbury United Methodist Church (NPS, DC), Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal (NPS, DC), and Luther Place (NPS, DC). Asbury United Methodist Church as well as Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church are both historically Black churches with vibrant, active ministries. They have nourished the souls of great African American leaders such as Mary Church Terrell, Mary McLeod Bethune, Frederick Douglass, and Rosa Parks. Luther Place Memorial Church, and its affiliated N Street Village and Steinbruck Center, play instrumental roles in counteracting homelessness and gentrification in the DC community.

Creation Justice Ministries stands with these churches as they speak out against the incidents of December 13th, and our organization affirms that Black Lives Matter. Please read below the churches' responses to the December 13th incidents.

• Please be aware that there are several fake GoFundMe and Paypal links saying they're raising funds for the churches. If you want to donate, please use the links on the churches' websites. 
• "My Church Will Replace its Black Lives Matter Sign. Will America Replace its Racist Myth?" Washington Post opinion editorial by Rev. William H. Lamar IV, pastor of Metropolitan AME Church
• Public Statement by Rev. Dr. Ianther M. Mills, senior pastor of Asbury United Methodist Church
• Statement on Asbury UMC Vandalism  by Bishop LaTrelle Miller Easterling, Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church
• Letter from Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Metropolitan Washington, DC Synod Bishop Leila Ortiz
• "Statement on Black Lives Matter Signs Burned at D.C. Churches" by Rev. Dr. Susan Henry-Crowe, General Secretary of the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society
  
• Statement on the Racist Threats to US Churches by the National Council of Churches USA 12.17.20
  

Social Media

Commentary tweeted or re-tweeted by Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church:

Twitter thread by Luther Place Memorial church:

Tweet by neighboring National City Christian Church: