United Church of Christ Leader Sickened by Supreme Court Decision Upholding Muslim Ban

The Rev. John C. Dorhauer, UCC general minister and president

The Rev. John C. Dorhauer, general minister and president of the United Church of Christ, today (June 26) responded on Facebook to the 5-4 Supreme Court decision upholding President Trump’s travel ban policy. “We incarcerate or kill black and brown bodies at will and with full impunity. We erect Muslim bans, build walls … and then imprison brown and black skin refugees without due process …,” the post reads in part. “Let it be known that people of faith did not join the crowd, wave their flags, and acquiesce to a government bent on re-establising white power and white supremacy …”

Earlier in the day, Dorhauer was one of several UCC leaders expressing anger over the Supreme Court ruling.

Michael J. Readinger, president and CEO of CHHSM

“We stand with Rev. Dorhauer and the rest of the United Church of Christ leadership in condemning the Supreme Court decision,” said Michael J. Readinger, president and CEO of CHHSM. “The travel ban policy clearly is motivated by racial and religious discrimination. Our health and human service member ministries are on the front lines. They have seen the physical and emotional trauma caused by religious discrimination and racism. No one is served unless all are served equally.”

Here is the complete text of Dorhauer’s post:

“I am sick. Every day, the work so many have committed to over decades to build deeper understandings of how love works, to build deeper acceptance of our differences and an embrace of our diversity, to create commitments to build a just world for all get eroded by white men who feel like their power and privilege is being taken away. Well, it is being taken away. It should be. We didn’t earn it, we stole it. We killed for it. We continue to revoke voting rights laws to maintain it. We incarcerate or kill black and brown bodies at will and with full impunity. We erect Muslim bans, build walls on the border where the brown skin people cross, and then imprison brown and black skin refugees without due process and having ripped their children from their arms.