Social Justice

America has made mental illness a crime. Jails in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago each house more people with mental illnesses than any hospital. In this revelatory book, journalist Alisa Roth goes deep inside the criminal justice system to tell how and why it has become a warehouse where inmates are denied proper treatment, abused, and punished in ways that make them sicker. Through intimate stories of people in the system and those trying to fix it, Roth reveals the hidden forces behind this crisis and suggests how a fairer and more humane approach might look.

The grandson of a slave, Dr. Ossian Sweet moved his family to an all-white Detroit neighborhood in 1925. When his neighbors attempted to drive him out, Sweet defended himself, resulting in the death of a white man and a murder trial for Sweet. There followed one of the most important (and shockingly unknown) cases in Civil Rights history. Also caught up in the intense courtroom drama were legal giant Clarence Darrow and the newly formed National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

John Pavlovitz examines the bedrock ideas of our religion: the existence of hell, the utility of prayer, the way we treat LGBTQ people, the value of anger, and other doctrines to help all of us take a good, honest look at how the beliefs we hold can shape our relationships with God and our fellow humans - and to make sure that love has the last, loudest word.

From gun control to reproductive health, a conservative Supreme Court will reshape the lives of all Americans for decades to come. The time to develop and defend a progressive vision of the US Constitution that protects the rights of all people is now.

While our investments should bring returns that meet our needs for expected and unexpected life events, our investments can also be a powerful extension of our values, intentions, and commitments: we can invest in what we care about. The Social Justice Investor is ready to help you put your money where your values are. This step-by-step guide to personal finance removes all the technical jargon and introduces you to the basic building blocks of investment management.

It would be logical for one to think that those who call themselves Christians would have a biblical worldview, but that is not the case. Statistics show that only 9% of those who identify as Christians think biblically about the issues of the world. That means that 91% of Christians have a secular or unbiblical worldview, which proves that they've been taken captive by the world's philosophies instead of taking them captive “according to Christ” (Col. 2:8). Worldview Matters covers six major worldviews from 30,000 feet, giving Christians a big picture view of the world today. Along the...

A leading Supreme Court expert recounts the personal and philosophical rivalries that forged our nation's highest court and continue to shape our daily lives. The Supreme Court is the most mysterious branch of government, and yet the Court is at root a human institution, made up of very bright people with very strong egos, for whom political and judicial conflicts often become personal.

Privilege is a social consequence of our unwillingness to reckon with and turn from sin. But stewarded, it can help us see and participate in God's inbreaking kingdom. Scripture repeatedly affirms that privilege is real and declares that, rather than exploiting it for selfish gain or feeling immobilized by it, Christians have a responsibility to leverage it. Subversive Witness asks us to grapple with privilege, indifference, and systemic sin in new ways by using biblical examples to reveal the complex nature of privilege and Christians' responsibility in stewarding it well.

The War on Cops exposes the truth about officer use of force and explodes the conceit of "mass incarceration". A rigorous analysis of data shows that crime, not race, drives police actions and prison rates. The growth of proactive policing in the 1990s, along with lengthened sentences for violent crime, saved thousands of minority lives. In fact, Mac Donald argues, no government agency is more dedicated to the proposition that "black lives matter" than today's data-driven, accountable police department.

Karl Marx's devastating critique of capitalism, and his proposal of communism as the answer to the failings of the capitalist system, bore their greatest fruits in the twentieth century with the formation of the communist state in the Soviet Union. This great venture has now all but completely failed. Yet the force of the communist belief offered the prospect of "justice on this earth" to countless numbers. And Marx's critique has influenced generations of thinkers who call themselves Marxists.

Fragmented America: Navigating the New Normal by John E. Miller In a time when America seems more divided than ever, Fragmented America: Navigating the New Normal offers a beacon of hope and a path forward. Drawing from his extensive experience as a pastor, author, filmmaker, and community leader, John E. Miller provides a compelling blend of scriptural wisdom and practical guidance to address the pressing issues of our day. This insightful book delves into the heart of America’s challenges, from political polarization and social fragmentation to technological upheaval and economic ...

Through over ten years of research, interviewing activists along with unprecedented access to their personal archives, Tracy and Sonnie tell a crucial, untold story of the New Left. Their deeply sourced narrative history shows how poor and working-class individuals from diverse ethnic, rural and urban backgrounds cooperated and drew strength from one another. The groups they founded redefined community organizing, and transformed the lives and communities they touched.

What does salt, light, and ink, as mentioned in Matthew 5:13-20, have to do with scribal artistry? This intriguing question opens the door to a rich tapestry of spiritual exploration, where the seemingly disparate elements of ancient wisdom and contemporary faith converge to reveal profound insights. In Matthew 5:13-20, we find a mosaic of metaphors and teachings offered by Christ, each holding a unique significance in the context of our faith journey. Salt, with its preserving and flavor-enhancing qualities; light, illuminating the path of righteousness; and ink, the timeless medium of ...

Who are you? How do the identities you hold—like your racial or gender identity—impact you every day? How do they impact others? These big and important questions are key to understanding ourselves. Part of being your true self means learning about group identities and how they affect our experience of the world. With kid-friendly explanations of key ideas and relevant scenarios, this text will help young kids explore their identities and how it shapes their experience.

Caliph Washington's life was never supposed to matter. As a Black teenager from the vice-ridden city of Bessemer, Alabama, Washington was wrongfully convicted of killing an Alabama policeman in 1957. Sentenced to death, he came within minutes of the electric chair - nearly a dozen times. A Kafka-esque legal odyssey in which Washington's original conviction was overturned three times before he was finally released in 1972, his story is the kind that pervades the history of American justice.

We are at war. It is a spiritual war. People are involved, but the fight is not as much against people as against human selfishness and the oppression that comes as a result. God has given us a choice, and God has given us a charge. We are all Adam and Eve. What are we going to choose? Are we going to live for something much greater than ourselves? Are we going to live for God by living for others? Are we going to rise to the challenge of the world set before us and make the world a much better place or look for some lifeboat where we can wait for God to rescue us? You decide.