The Court Ruling on Philando Castile
Almost one year ago, after the shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, I wrote a post lamenting police brutality and its blatant desecration of the image of God inherent in black bodies. Unfortunately, one year later, I’m left distraught again as Philando Castile received no justice for his unwarranted death. Officer Jeronimo Yanez was acquitted of all charges surrounding his shooting of Castile. This now adds to the ever-growing list of officers who have been acquitted or have faced no charges after highly questionable use of force toward black people.
If there is any hope for this injustice to end, it is evident that all people of good conscience must mobilize to advocate for systemic and cultural change. We all have some role to play in this fight. Moreover, my prayer is that the Church—the hands and feet of Jesus himself—would be leading the charge for all necessary reform. In all honesty, the scope of transformation needed coupled with the history of racism in this country has me discouraged that the type of change needed will ever come, but I trust in a good God who reigns and establishes justice in the earth. So we must press on.
City Image recently recorded an episode where we processed through the verdict. The episode has been posted below. Our prayer is that if you have wrestled with this, you will find our thoughts helpful. We are indeed living in the last days. The road to justice seems long and uncertain. But we rest knowing that God will mete out perfect justice on the day of judgement. Every unlawful killing will be accounted for. May his justice come quickly.
