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Is Christianity a Force of
Mental Slavery to Black Christians?
Resources on Black Progressive and Revolutionary Christianity
Op-ed by Kamau Austin, Publisher the Southeast Queens Scoop
Increasingly, some in the Black community are leaving the Church and Christianity altogether, calling it the “white man’s religion” or a tool of mental slavery. While it’s true that certain interpretations of Christianity have encouraged passivity and compliance with oppressive systems, it’s equally true that other expressions of the faith have been profoundly liberating—fueling revolutions, inspiring resistance, and sustaining movements for justice.
Christianity as a Tool of Liberation
History bears witness to the fact that countless Black leaders rooted their fight for freedom in Christian faith. Harriet Tubman relied on her deep spirituality to guide enslaved Africans to freedom along the Underground Railroad.
Nat Turner led one of the most significant slave rebellions in U.S. history inspired by biblical visions. Marcus Garvey invoked spiritual language to rally a global Pan-African movement.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. preached nonviolent resistance from the pulpit. The Deacons of Defense used their faith as a shield for civil rights workers against white supremacist terror. And long before them, Richard Allen founded the African Methodist Episcopal Church to empower Black Christians spiritually and politically.
Their faith was not a force of submission—it was a force of defiance, vision, and liberation. Without their insights and sacrifices, many of the freedoms we now take for granted, including the ability to openly debate religion and justice on social media, would not exist.
Reading the Bible for Themselves
Dr. Gayraud Wilmore, in his book Black Religion and Black Radicalism, shows that once enslaved Africans gained wider access to literacy and could read the Bible for themselves, rebellions and insurrections increased. Instead of pacifying them, scripture often emboldened them. They drew inspiration from the prophetic voices of Moses, Micah, and Amos—who all called for freedom from oppression and justice for the marginalized.
