Introduction

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Many argue that activism within black churches has declined (if not disappeared) since the days of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. But last month, on his birthday, a group of African American faith leaders called for Americans to “Occupy the Dream” with protests at Federal Reserve banks. If black churches are renewing their tradition of activism in this post-civil rights era, what are the most pressing issues for them to address?

Josef Sorett, in cooperation with Columbia University’s Institute for Religion, Culture and Public Life and Institute for Research in African-American Studies, organized this discussion. It is in conjunction with the public radio special “The Harlem Renaissance: Music, Religion, and the Politics of Race,” which will air at 8 p.m. on Feb. 14 on WNYC, and on other public radio stations nationwide.

View the Slide Show: A Legacy of Activism »