The Fire This Time

This summer has been marked with reminders of a not-so-distant past. To date, nine predominantly black churches, in a 24-day period, burned and sustained serious to irreparable damage. From Texas to Ohio, through the Carolinas, and down to Florida, questions are being asked: What or who is causing the fires, and could they have been prevented?

The most recent arson, which hit Houston’s Fifth Ward Missionary Baptist Church, took place on July 15. Two weeks later, Houston arson investigators announced that they believed the fire was intentionally set: The building’s back door was pried open and traces of fire accelerant were found. Some of the other fires may not be arson. According to Justice Department Director of Public Affairs Melanie Newman, “Preliminary investigations indicate that two of the fires were started by natural causes and one was the result of an electrical fire. All of the fires remain under active investigation, and federal law enforcement continues to work to determine the cause of all of the fires. To date, the investigations have not revealed any potential links between the fires.”

However, the timing of the fires makes many suspect that the arsons among them are motivated by anti-black hatred. State Rep. Harold Dutton, D-Houston, told the Chronicle there is likely little doubt as to the arsonists’ objective.

“You always want to establish motive. Here, where there seems to be a motive, [there] seems to follow the pattern throughout. Whether it’s the same person doing it or not, I think it all comes from the same motive, which is again, these kinds of things.” These “kinds of things” are not only the killings of nine Charleston Emanuel AME churchgoers by white supremacist terrorist Dylann Roof, but also the current argument over the Confederate flag, long seen as a symbol of both Southern pride and hatred for non-whites, the two not always being mutually exclusive.

State Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, acknowledged the experience as “a crisis moment” for the Houston church and its congregation. He echoed Dutton’s connections to the past.

“I think people are coming to understand that these are not issues relegated to the past, but are still with us to this day. The backlash you are seeing against the Confederate battle flag perfectly demonstrates this point. It’s important for folks to be mindful of what’s going on around them in American society, and how we’ve have arrived at this point,” said Ellis.

Here in Austin, Rev. Lisa Saunders is the rector of the ethnically diverse St. James’ Episcopal Church. “I think that one of the biggest things we can be doing to prevent these hateful and destructive acts would be engaging in the work of racial reconciliation and truth-telling.” As a Caucasian head of a historically black church, Saunders’ candor hits the appropriate and refreshing tone.

“What I know to be very powerful in our community is honest conversations about race, training that talks about institutional racism – we have a program called Freedom School. Institutional racism still exists in our city and it’s present in education. It’s present in our institutions.

“But the hope is not that people will just take the information away with them, but [that they] really be transformed in relationships, in knowledge, and go out and live their life in a different way. Or, where some of us have power [to create change], [go out and] actually be courageous and do something.”

Special Agent Michelle Lee, from the FBI’s San Antonio field office, when asked if any measures were being taken to protect black churches from further arsons, told the Chronicle, “The FBI has been invited and continues to conduct outreach efforts with faith-based organizations. Recent activities have involved briefings on the FBI’s civil rights and domestic extremist threat programs, to include violations of hate crime statutes. We are also sharing potential indicators of violence, and discussing various measures other organizations have taken to improve security and keep their members safe.”

The confirmed arsons, and ongoing investigations into other fires, show progress toward racial equality must continue and mustn’t stop at mere checkpoints. Seeing milestones, such as Obama’s election, as a conclusive victory over racism will prove disastrous, asserted Rep. Dutton.

He believes, like many of all colors, that we’ve likely rung the bell prematurely in proclamations of “post-racialism.” “I think that far too long we think of the past as old history. But this is not yesterday – it’s today. I think that, looking back on all this, we’ll start to figure out that perhaps we started to celebrate a little too soon.”