THE CHURCH OWES A DEBT

The biblical invocation to love thy neighbor is at the core of everything Ekemini Uwan does. In her work, the Nigerian American writer, podcast host and public theologian finds ways to celebrate the foundational truths of her Christian faith while still critiquing the church, an institution that used religious doctrine to justify the transatlantic slave trade in the Americas and colonialism throughout Africa—what she calls the “twin evils.” To try to amend the long reach of these injustices, Uwan has become a prominent advocate for reparations, including as a charter member of the International Civil Society Working Group for the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent at the United Nations. For her, the concept of reparations extends beyond monetary compensation to the need for religious institutions to acknowledge the widespread harm they have caused. “It is economic and sociological, for sure,” she says. “But firstly, it is theological, because [what was done] is a spiritual violation.”