Tuesday, June 10, 2025
6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. EDT
Location: Online Via Livestream
Five years ago, people around the United States—and the world—watched a police officer kneel on the neck of George Floyd on a street in Minneapolis, Minnesota, ending his life, shocking our nation, and leading to protests, reflection, and predictions of a racial justice reckoning. In response, the Initiative held one of our most powerful and widely viewed dialogues, which challenged us to resist the racism in our streets, structures, and ourselves. On this sad anniversary and as we remember Juneteenth, our nation is still in pain and still needs greater justice. For Catholics and all believers, racism is not just a political issue: it is a sin, a national moral failure, and a fundamental test of our faith.
Now five years later, a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, a leader in Catholic social ministry, a journalist and pro-life leader, and a pastor in Montgomery, Alabama will look back at what happened and what didn’t, look around at signs of both progress and retreat on racial justice, and look ahead to what we are called to do now in light of Catholic social teaching.
Kimberly Mazyck, associate director for engagement for the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life, will moderate the dialogue.
Resources
View articles, videos, and other resources for this dialogue.
Participants
Marcia Chatelain
Marcia Chatelain is the Penn Presidential Compact Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, having previously taught history and African American studies at Georgetown University. She is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning book Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America (2021).
Ralph McCloud
Ralph McCloud is the former director of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the U.S. bishops’ anti-poverty program. He is a fellow with NETWORK and a recipient of the national Keep the Dream Alive Honors award from Catholic Charities USA.
Gloria Purvis
Gloria Purvis is the host of the Gloria Purvis Podcast at America Media and has served on the National Black Catholic Congress’ Commission on Social Justice, the Maryland Catholic Conference’s Respect for Life Advisory Board, and the Pastoral Council of the Archdiocese of Washington.
Fr. Manuel Williams, C.R.
Fr. Manuel Williams, C.R., is the director of Resurrection Catholic Missions of the South, Inc. and the pastor of Resurrection Catholic Church in Montgomery, Alabama. He is the treasurer for the board of Faith In Action Alabama and an adjunct instructor at the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University New Orleans.
Related
Accessibility
All accommodation requests should be sent to cathsocialthought@georgetown.edu by Friday, June 6. A good-faith effort will be made to fulfill requests.