Anti-racism resources for Catholics

As America sees a rise in backlash against programs that promote diversity, equity and inclusion, the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe recommits itself to doing its part to help dismantle racism in our communities. 

The current reality in our world invites Franciscans and all people of goodwill to explore how to promote and bring to fruition the Gospel message of inclusion for those on the margins of society. This is no small challenge.   

We encourage you to take time to deepen your knowledge, skills and spiritual depth to confront racism and white supremacy through reading, videos and reflection. Here are some anti-racism resources for Catholics to help you get started. 

Anti-racism resources for Catholics 

• White Supremacy and American Christianity Series – In a series of programs sponsored by NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, Fr. Bryan Massingale and Dr. Robert P. Jones explore the intersections among white supremacy, authoritarianism in government and white Christian nationalism. They further share how the white Christian churches in the United States (including significant numbers of white Roman Catholics) are participants, often unknowingly or unreflectively, in the backlash against “D.E.I. programs” meant to promote inclusion and equity and increase representation and participation from diverse groups. 
   
  They provide a framework to assess and evaluate the intersection of our Christian practice and the ways that racism and white supremacy continue to impact life in the United States. They offer clear commentary and a ray of hope on how we can move forward as a Church and a nation, while not downplaying the challenges and dangers we face. These are great discussion starters for small groups. 
  

• Just Faith Ministries offers programs for ongoing adult and church formation, including three exploring antiracism. Each provides an excellent introduction for a small faith group to better understand the challenges faced through racism. These are done in a multi-week program of prayer, reading, videos, and reflection. If you want to start to build a foundation in your local ministry to confront racism, these are an excellent way to begin. 
  

• “Racial Justice and the Catholic Church” by Fr. Bryan Massingale outlines and challenges the Catholic Church to use its social teaching to confront its own history and the larger world. 
  

• “Unlearning White Supremacy: A Spirituality for Racial Liberation” by Alex Mikulich brings social psychology and deep spiritual practice to bear on the way that people of faith need to confront the structures of racism in our Church and world. 
  

Coming in 2026 

Our Office of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation is developing a program to help ministries train people to lead their local communities in developing anti-racism awareness and action. Thanks to grant funding from the ACTA Foundation, we are working with an anti-racism Catholic scholar and consultant to develop and test the program. The program is in the testing phase and we hope to make it available for wider use in 2026.