Double your impact and help protect the vote

Dear friend and fellow sojourner,

As a supporter of Sojourners you already know that there are clear and frequent biblical mandates around poverty, peacebuilding, racial and gender equality, environmental stewardship, and protecting life at every stage—loving your neighbor as yourself as Christ taught us—issues often ignored at election time.

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the verifiable racial inequities in our society, as Black and Latinx Americans are hospitalized with the virus at five and four times the rate of white Americans, respectively. In these twin crises, there is a message that resonates throughout faith traditions. That message: Racism is the primary religious issue in this election year. Amid the coronavirus pandemic and our country’s racial reckoning, we are seeing even some conservative white Christian voters peel off from their 2016 voting patterns.

Thanks to a generous anonymous donor, all donations to Sojourners will be doubled, up to $50,000, for a limited time.

We have to get past the individualization of racism, because while individual actions and beliefs are important, the greatest damage to people of color is from systems and culture. Most white people have been oblivious to what our brothers and sisters of color in the body of Christ know is real. We must ask ourselves: How do we embrace, acknowledge, and stand with our Black brothers and sisters in Christ? We must examine the systems and society that have, for too long, endangered the lives of anyone in this country who’s not part of the “white majority.”

While this issue goes much deeper than any political candidate, racism must be a dealbreaker for Christians as we go to the polls this presidential election. That moral conversation is challenging many long-held assumptions and hints that change is possible—like the need for fundamental transformation of our policing and criminal justice systems, universal health care, fair housing, and just wages. These could become “religious issues” which need to be part of the discourse this election year and beyond.

Whether our changing cultural consciousness will have a lasting effect on the structures of our society remains to be seen. But a commitment to vote out racism up and down the electoral ballot is the necessary beginning for a better direction. You can help us help make that so.

The recent passings of Ruth Bader Ginsburg and John Lewis, both leaders who championed voting rights, remind us that we have a responsibility to continue their legacies and protect the vote. That’s why Sojourners is educating, mobilizing, and organizing every day leading up to the election – and we are preparing now to respond to election outcomes.

Thank you for being a part of the moral referendum on racism—and all of its implications from voter suppression to policing and changing all of our systems.  Your generous gift will directly support people who are putting their faith into action for social justice, and change the national conversation on race and faith.

• With appearances in national media, op-eds, national polling, social media campaigns, and relational outreach, we’re connecting with church, civic, and media figures to change the narrative about race, faith, and politics.

• Our Lawyers and Collars initiative is combating voter suppression, advocating for a safe, fair election, especially in states most at risk—including North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Alabama, Arizona, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Ohio—through a network of state leaders, congregations, and community volunteers.

• We’re leading weekly strategy calls and educational webinars on voting rights, domestic violence, and immigration with clergy, nonprofit leaders, and everyday advocates who are impacting their spheres of influence in cities across the U.S.

• Through Sojourners magazine, Sojo.net, social media, and Jim Wallis’ podcast The Soul of the Nation, our editorial teams provide innovative reporting, commentary, and resources to equip our readers and reach new audiences with a gospel message.

Let’s seize the momentum that this year has brought us, allowing hope and faith to strengthen us.  Thank you in advance for your gift to our shared mission.

With gratitude,

Adam R. Taylor

President-elect and Acting President, Sojourners

P.S. Remember, all gifts will be DOUBLED, up to $50,000, and to make the most impact in this year’s election please give by September 30. Thank you!