New in the Church Library: Tears we Cannot Stop

This small book, Tears We Cannot Stop; a Sermon to White America (305.8 D), by Black pastor Michael Eric Dyson, confronts with anger and unflinching honesty the sources of violence in our nation’s longstanding culture of white supremacy. Organized as a church service, the book starts with a “call to worship,” proceeds through several “sermons” to a “closing prayer.” But each chapter is actually a sermon with heart-wrenching examples from the author’s life experiences, seeking action and change in addition to guilt. He wants readers to see what it really means to be Black in America. It ends with a plea for white Americans to rise up in defense of, and in solidarity with, our African-American brothers and sisters. As Toni Morrison wrote, the book contains “moving personal recollections, profound cultural analysis, and guidance for moral redemption. A work to relish.”

~Carol Jensen, Church Librarian