WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — With the recent events of racial tension in Minneapolis and Atlanta grabbing headlines across the nation, a church in Central Georgia wanted to help start the conversation of how to make race relations better in this country, so they invited the people to Southside Baptist to create dialogue.
“We have to speak out against wrong. That’s really my whole thing here. It’s wrong and we got to fix this,” says organizer Stephen Walls.
More than 100 people formed a diverse crowd in the parking lot of Southside Baptist Church in Warner Robins, an event designed for people to talk to listen and to learn from conversations about race relations in America today. A former high school basketball and cross country coach, Stephen Walls helped organize the unity rally, specifically with coaches in mind. He also invited student-athletes and parents across the area to help build bridges of understanding between whites and people of color.
Walls explains, “I want them a part of this because every day we come in contact with these student athletes. I think it’s important where they come from and how they feel. We need to try and learn what we can do to help that student athlete feel more comfortable.”
Coaches and pastors from several churches in Warner Robins spoke to the crowd while ideas were shared between those in attendance with hopes to create a better appreciation towards one another. Walls says that can only happen when everyone decides to speak out against racial injustice.
Unity rally held by Southside Baptist Church in Warner Robins
“During this time, it’s been a lot more conversation, a lot more outcry and a lot more people speaking out about the officers and the need to be arrested, and there need to be some kind of change in the justice system to figure these things out,” says Walls. “So I think there’s been a lot of positive going on. There’s always going to be negatives and we can focus on that all we want to but there is a super small percentage of people that are doing bad things right now with the protest.”
Walls says he doesn’t expect for race relations to be healed overnight but he hopes the conversation continues as well as emotions continue to heal.
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