By Reverend Gervais Barger, Pastor of Peace Missionary Ministries
Editor’s note: The following statement was delivered by Rev. Barger at the recent Interfaith meeting held on June 26, 2020.
Good morning, my name Is Reverend Gervais Barger and I am the Pastor of Peace Missionary Ministries on 90 Main Street in New Britain, and the President of the Black Ministerial Alliance of New Britain. I come before you to share the vision of our organization in these dark times. We are witnessing an unprecedented movement in our country that is birthed from our fight against racism and hatred towards black and brown people, that has gone on far too long and will no longer be tolerated. You would think that after 400 years and the Civil Rights movement of the 50’s and 60’s, that this racism and bigotry would have disappeared; but as we can clearly see, unfortunately it is alive and well. Many young black and brown people do not understand it, because our accurate history is not in the public-school history books. Without knowing our history, it has been said that we are doomed to repeat it and I believe, this is one of the reasons we are witnessing this racism and hatred repeatedly. Therefore, we are standing to protest and shout to the establishment, we will not tolerate this pervasive evil any longer. We are standing to demand what has been written in the declaration of independence, which was intended for white men with property: (All men are created equal). We demand this truth, truly to be extended to all men and women regardless of their color, nation of origin, culture, and ethnicity!
The piece of history that has shaped our country into this divisive hot bed that we are witnessing today is this. In 1865 when four million slaves were set free, the established wealthy white regime convinced poor whites, that blacks were a threat to their jobs, their potential income, their families, and their chance to acquire the American dream. The truth of the matter is, that evil mentality has provided an under current in our nation that persists to this day. It was not true then and it is not true today. Black men and women are not a threat to white America, we are apart of the fabric of this society in which we should all have an equal opportunity and all have an equal right to become whoever and what ever our dreams and efforts can achieve! We have always been, and we will continue to be a vital part of the greatness of this nation.
Today in the city of New Britain I am asking that we Unite on multiple levels. The first unity must be within the black community. We must come together to write our own narrative, so we stand with one voice and tell our elected officials what we want instead of standing around waiting to fight over the scraps that fall off the table. The second unity must be educating the youth, so they know the truth about our history and this nation. Black men and women are a huge part of the success this nation shares in being great. The third unity must be multicultural, like what we have in this discussion today. Blacks, Whites, Hispanics, Muslims, Asians, and Native Americans must unite around the table of change. The present culture of protests has made a huge difference in the election process, but we must push the envelope further. Our present persistence has resulted in hate crime bills being signed into law on every level. The City Council of New Britain voted to declare racism a public health crisis. Images and statues of racist bigots are being removed from prominent public view, but we cannot stop until the job is done. Qualified Immunity must be eradicated from the law books. Qualified immunity is the defense used by police when they are sued for violating our constitutional rights. It has bred a lack of accountability in policing policies across America, which gives police the power to kill innocent, unarmed black people without suffering the consequences. This ideology has prompted our Common Council to form a citizen’s review board that will oversee New Britain policing policies. We need to understand that when we hear about defunding the police, what does that really mean? It means we need to take a closer look at how we can do what we are doing better. Why send an armed police officer to a 911 call to handle a complaint about a homeless person? Why send an armed police officer to a 911 call to handle a complaint about a person suffering from mental illness? Why send an armed police officer to a 911 call to handle a complaint about youth that are making noise after hours in the neighborhood? These calls can better be handled by those who are professionally trained to deescalate these matters. It is not a knock against our police, who by the way we need, it is asking can we do this a better more efficient way? We have a unique opportunity to send a message as a united community that our elected officials cannot deny! We stand together, united to demand change! We stand together, united to stamp out racism, bigotry, and hatred in any form in our society! We stand together, united to demand fair and equal treatment. Our united battle cry must be, “Enough is Enough!” We must fight united together, we must fight united persistently, we must fight united together in peaceful protests, we must fight united together for political power and most of all we must fight united together in November when we go to the polls to vote! We must put in position those people who will change the culture of our society, so we all feel safe. We have come this far by faith! Now let us never forget those who have lost their lives, and given us a chance to demand changes needed to truly make our nation live up to the high ideals found in the declaration of independence; “All Men and Women are Created Equal!” All means All!!!
