Dr. Jemar Tisby received wide acclaim for his 2019 book, “The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism.” In that work, the historian narrated how Christians in the U.S. have often been in lock-step with the wider culture at every turn in our violent, dehumanizing story of race and racism.

He follows up “The Color of Compromise” with “The Spirit of Justice: True Stories of Faith, Race, and Resistance,” which is available beginning today. I recently touched base with Dr. Tisby, who is a Good Faith Media Contributing Correspondent, about his work. The following has been minimally edited. 

Craig Nash:
Your book “The Color of Compromise” was released the year before the murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. Those events sparked what some have called (among other things) a “racial conversation” in our country. Four years later, how would you describe the current state of “the conversation.” 

Jemar Tisby:
Many people don’t realize that the appetite for books on racial justice has plummeted in the years since the 2020 racial justice uprisings. To be candid, that has a lot to do with “white racial fatigue.”

In 2020, white people sat up and realized that racism was still an urgent issue. As a result, books like mine landed on the New York Times bestseller list. But most people did not maintain that level of interest. It’s not a surprise, but it’s still disappointing. 

On top of that, whenever there is a hint of racial progress, there is also a backlash. No sooner did 2020 end than we had an attempted insurrection on January 6, 2021. Add to that efforts to defund DEI programs, calling everything that talks about race “Critical Race Theory” and rolling back action provisions— the backlash has been disproportionate to the actual progress made. 

Christian churches, colleges and universities, and nonprofits have gotten scared to even broach the conversation of racial justice. I’m not talking about the ultra-conservative organizations, either. More moderate Christian institutions are hesitant to enter into conversations about race for fear of being labeled “woke” or “liberal” and are coming under pressure from powerful and loud constituents. 

That’s why it’s important for people to engage with books like “The Spirit of Justice.” First, it tells publishers that people will buy the books and makes it more likely that books on this topic and from authors of color will be published in the future.

Second, and more significantly, reading about racial justice does not have to come in the wake of another tragedy. We shouldn’t need another George Floyd to read about racial justice. 

CN:
Your new book, “The Spirit of Justice,” introduces readers to over 50 individuals who have confronted racism. I imagine those stories animate your thoughts each day. Could you briefly share one that is giving you hope today? 

JT:
I open the book with an eyewitness account of Myrlie Evers-Williams— whose husband, Medgar, was assassinated in front of their family home in 1963— giving an inspirational message. 

We were in a press conference at the grand opening of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, and a journalist asked Evers-Williams how today’s racial landscape compared to that of the 1960s during the civil rights movement. 

She said that she was seeing dynamics in the 21st century that reminded her of what happened in the worst days of Jim Crow. She said she was “weary.” At 84 years old, she certainly earned the right not only to be tired but also to rest from her work. 

But I’ll always remember what she said next. 

“But it’s something about the spirit of justice that raises up like a war horse. That horse that stands with its back sunk in and hears that bell— I like to say the ‘bell of freedom.’ And all of a sudden, it becomes straight, and the back becomes stiff. And you become determined all over again.”

We need to cultivate the spirit of justice so that no matter what happens, we can have the resilience to become determined again. 

CN:
As a writer, I’m always interested in the material on the “cutting room floor.” What is a story you were itching to tell that didn’t make it into the book? 

JT:
When I started writing this book, I was a little worried there wouldn’t be enough people (along with discoverable historical records) who stood against racism to fill a whole book. I am so glad I was wrong!

There were so many people I just didn’t have enough room to write about. We should all know more about Howard Thurman, the Christian mystic of the civil rights movement.

I wish I could have written about John Brown, the white abolitionist who literally took up arms to do away with slavery, and Nannie Helen Burroughs, who started the National Training School for Women and Girls. 

But the dozens of historical figures I do write about in the book will inspire people and I hope, encourage them to explore particular people and events more deeply through their own research. 

These are the varied and intertwined stories of regular people who chose to courageously confront racism instead of compromising with it. They tapped into the spirit of justice in their day and we can do the same in ours.