With broken hearts we mourn the senseless loss of 10 beloved children of God who were killed in a grocery store in Buffalo, N.Y., on May 14. Celestine Chaney, Roberta Drury, Katherine Massey, Heyward Patterson, Aaron Salter, Pearl Young, Ruth Whitfield, Margus Morrison, Andre Mackneil, and Geraldine Talley were civil rights activists, community volunteers, parents, siblings, and friends. They were victims of a direct attack on a Black community — an attack that is emblematic of a rising wave of violence driven by white supremacists in the U.S.
The alleged shooter sought to do more than kill. It was his intent to use this act of terrorism to promote the hateful ideology that drove his actions. In extensive writings shared publicly at the time of the attack, he stated clearly his fear that immigrants and Americans of color are being used to dilute white culture and political power. This “replacement theory” — once a fringe political view — has been more widely circulated in recent years as some Republican politicians and pundits have used their platforms to amplify this message, legitimizing its place in conservative political culture. As a result, a growing number of citizens and leaders now sanction elements of this theory. The rhetoric supporting it is increasingly violent, xenophobic, and antisemitic, fracturing the bonds that sustain our pluralistic society.
America began with a claim that each individual was created equally and endowed by God with certain inalienable rights. We must embrace this claim with conviction. It is the reason our nation came to be. And because of this founding ideal, this country does not belong — and never has belonged — only to one race, one ethnicity, one religion, one culture. Those clinging to bigotry and white supremacy commit “blasphemy against the American creed.”
As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we are committed to the doctrine that “all are alike unto God” and that “God is no respecter of persons.” An increasingly multiracial society is a welcome fulfillment of our national promise. People of diverse backgrounds living together in peace will be the hallmark of Zion. We echo President M. Russell Ballard’s call “to embrace God’s children compassionately and eliminate any prejudice, including racism, sexism, and nationalism.”
White supremacy is a corrupting ideology. It is rooted in individual and cultural pride. It is driven by fear and seeks to spread fear that corrupts our nation, churches, schools, and homes. Because we know that “perfect love casteth out fear,” we cannot be passive in the face of this rising evil. We must each work boldly and actively to root out racism and create a just peace in our own hearts and in our communities. This is not easy or comfortable work; it will require courage, great love, and ongoing concrete action. As we welcome others with charity and seek unity in the midst of our differences, we lay the foundations of Zion. We encourage all to “renounce war and proclaim peace.”
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