“There is a class of people in this world who have fallen into the lowest degree of humiliation, far below beggary, and who are deprived not only of all social consideration, but also, in everybody’s opinion, of the specific human dignity, reason itself—and these are the only people who, in fact, are able to tell the truth: All the others lie.” - Simone Weil
WORKING TOWARD A LIBERATING LOVE
Jon Paul Robles is an ordained priest and co-pastor for the Sacred Commons Church (Youngstown, Oh). He is the director of The Greater Youngstown Community Dialogue On Racism and a coordinator for Mahoning Valley Sojourn to the Past.
He is currently a grad student of Theology & Culture at St. Stephen’s University with a thesis that merges the philosophy of Simone Weil, poverty, and funk. His work orbits issues of justice, the human condition, and public theology embedded within intricate social and religious frameworks.
As a grandchild of Mexican-Americans who migrated from Texas to the Midwest, an Oklahoma Osage crop duster and a Steel Magnolia from Kansas, he identifies as third-culture and finds that his work is birthed from the convergence of their stories.
He is married to Diana and together they have two wonderful children; Jon Luke and Maudie.
LISTEN TO WOMEN OF COLOR
“This is why it’s essential that we listen closely to the experiences and insights of people most exposed to all our society’s ills, viral and human-made. It’s become fashionable to say “trust black women” and to root for the leadership of women of color. And maybe it’s because I am a woman of color and wasn’t comfortable with how self-serving this advice seemed, or because it seemed to suggest a biological basis for some traits, I rejected this shorthand. But the truth isn’t that there’s some innate magic within us; it’s that the social and economic and cultural conditions that have been imposed on people at the base of the social hierarchy have given us the clearest view of the whole system. We can see how it’s broken and all those who are broken by it. That’s why it’s essential that women of color are at least as represented in government as we are in society. (As opposed to today, when over two-thirds of officials are white men, even though they’re only a third of the population.)” McGhee, Heather. The Sum of Us (p. 262). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
Maria Refujia (Cuca) Mendez-Robles
