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Seeking Justice, Not Theocracy
Nicole Hockley’s son Dylan was one of 26 killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. Hockley is co-founder of Sandy Hook Promise, which seeks to prevent violence in schools, homes, and communities. / Illustration by Louisa Cannell
ONE DOESN'T NEED Margaret Atwood’s dystopian fiction to see the frightening potential of theocracy. In this issue, writer René Ostberg tells a chilling story of a malign collusion of church and state — in this case, the Irish Catholic Church and the newly formed Irish state of the 1920s. Together, the two institutions acted as morality police, imprisoning women and girls for the “crime” of becoming pregnant out of wedlock — as Ostberg puts it, “for transgressing Catholic Ireland’s moral and class codes.” More than 10,000 Irish women and girls were incarcerated in so-called Magdalene laundries run by Catholic religious orders with state funding, the last of which wasn’t closed until 1996.
New & Noteworthy: Vigilante Justice, the ‘Unruly Saint,’ and More
From Children of the Underground
Children of the Underground
After seeing the courts return many children to allegedly abusive fathers, Faye Yager created an underground network that hid hundreds of mothers and children. The five-part docuseries Children of the Underground shows the moral complexity of Yager’s vigilante justice. Hulu/FX
Incarnating the Cotton Patch Gospel
Manal Shad is a 14-year-old climate activist from Dir, Pakistan. / Illustration by Samya Arif
“BRINGING HOME THE incarnation was the motivation for Clarence’s writing, his preaching, and his living. He believed that the incarnation was the only method of evangelization, that ‘we haven’t gotten anywhere until we see the word become flesh.’” So wrote associate editor Joyce Hollyday in our December 1979 cover feature on the Southern activist/farmer/writer Clarence Jordan. Our December issue, for many years, was our “incarnation” issue, focused on a contemporary or historical figure who lived out the way of Jesus.
New & Noteworthy: Climate Leaders, "The Viral Underclass," and More
From To the End
The Green New Dealings
To the End follows women of color as they advocate for the Green New Deal and face opposition within their political party. The documentary spotlights Sunrise Movement’s Varshini Prakash, Justice Democrats’ Alexandra Rojas, the Roosevelt Institute’s Rhiana Gunn-Wright, and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Jubilee Films
Passing the Torch
Amy Cardinal Christianson, a Métis woman and scientist, co-hosts the Good Fire podcast, which looks at Indigenous fire use around the world. / Illustration by Elyse Martin
JULIE POLTER arrived at Sojourners in 1990 to serve a year as an intern on our editorial staff. Three decades later, Polter steps into the role of editor of Sojourners magazine, the third person to fill that position in our 51-year history. Polter’s predecessor, Jim Rice, who succeeded our founding editor in 2006 and has been on Sojourners’ staff since 1981, will continue as a senior editor. During Rice’s tenure as editor, Sojourners has been consistently honored as “best in class” among its peer religious publications.
New & Noteworthy: Ben Crump, Faithful Innovation, and More
From Civil: Ben Crump
Legal Action
The documentary Civil: Ben Crump follows the civil rights attorney as he represents the families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Andre Hill. While Crump’s work sheds light on police brutality, he also takes legal action to protect Black farmers and bank customers. Netflix
New & Noteworthy: Youth v Gov, Celebrity Worship, and More
From Youth v Gov
The Future Fight
Youth v Gov, currently streaming on Netflix, follows the 21 American young people suing the U.S. government for creating the climate crisis and failing to act to protect their constitutional right to life, liberty, personal safety, and property. Barrelmaker Productions
New & Noteworthy: "Subversive Habits," Unjust Incarceration, and More
From Three Songs for Benzair
A Love Song
Elizabeth and Gulistan Mirzaei’s short documentary Three Songs for Benazir follows the life of a young newlywed couple, Shaista and Benazir, living in a Kabul camp for displaced persons. The Oscar-nominated documentary focuses on their burgeoning love as Shaista struggles with whether to join the Afghan National Army. Mirzaei Films.
New & Noteworthy: “Essential Labor,” Indigenous Resistance, and More
From The Neutral Ground
Biased History
Wanting to understand the enduring power of the myth of the Confederate “Lost Cause,” comedian CJ Hunt expanded what was originally a satirical internet video into an insightful documentary. Set against the New Orleans City Council’s 2015 vote to take down four Confederate monuments, The Neutral Ground explores hard truths of our nation’s past. ITVS.
New & Noteworthy: Fannie Lou Hamer, 'Fight Like Hell,' and More
Still from Landfall / Blackscrackle Films
Creative Action
Capturing the vibrant 2019 protests that pushed Puerto Rico’s governor to resign, the documentary Landfall examines life after Hurricane María and the debt and environmental crises that devastated the U.S. colony long before, prompting local resistance and creative action. Blackscrackle Films.
New & Noteworthy: April 2022
From Women of the Movement
Moved by Love
The limited ABC series Women of the Movement follows Mamie Till-Mobley as she grieves the murder of her son Emmett Till and fights for justice. Directed by four Black women, the show tells the true story of the woman who helped fuel the civil rights movement. Two Drifters
New & Noteworthy: “This Here Flesh,” Exposing Injustice, and More
This Here Flesh by Cole Arthur Riley / The Facility from Seth Freed Wessler and Field of Vision
Exposing Injustice
Reporter Seth Freed Wessler utilizes video call footage to expose the horrific conditions of a detention center used by ICE to detain immigrants amid the COVID-19 pandemic. His documentary, The Facility, follows those inside as they protest for better protections and for their release. Field of Vision.
New & Noteworthy: America's Broken Medical System, Feminism, and More
Homeroom and Abolition. Feminism. Now.
Classroom Changemakers
Homeroom, the final documentary film chapter of the Oakland trilogy, features Oakland (Calif.) High School’s class of 2020 as they organize to remove police officers from their school and navigate remote learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Concordia Studio/Open’hood.
New & Noteworthy: ‘Light Up the Night,’ Catholic Identity, and More
Travis Lupick's Light Up the Night and Katie Pruitt's new podcast, The Recovering Catholic
Rediscovering God
Katie Pruitt’s debut album, Expectations, explored growing up gay and Catholic in the American South. On her new podcast series, The Recovering Catholic, she speaks with comedians, religious leaders, and other artists about how they see God and what spirituality means today. Osiris Media.
New & Noteworthy: 'Passing,' Dismantling Prisons, and More
From Passing / Picture Films
Shifting Identity
Adapted from Nella Larsen’s 1929 novel, Passing explores a Harlem Renaissance-era relationship between two reunited childhood friends, one of whom now passes as white while the other lives as a Black woman. The black-and-white film, which debuted at Sundance, moved to Netflix on Nov. 10. Picture Films.
Sojourners Magazine Turns 50
Previous versions of the magazine, left to right: March/April 1973, Fall 1972, May/June 1973
WE'VE BEEN TOLD we don’t look a day over 39! Okay, old joke. But we’re acutely aware of the slightly awkward irony of an intentionally countercultural—and counterinstitutional—movement, formed in the ragtag, “don’t trust anyone over 30” culture of the early 1970s, turning 50 years old. Like the Rolling Stones, we’re still hard at it, as we mark five decades since the beginnings of Sojourners. While we’re more structured and stable than back in the early days of the so-called People’s Christian Coalition (which, not surprisingly, published many raised fists in our first few issues), we’re still doing our best to speak truth to power, afflict the comfortable, and all that. Our outward appearance may have evolved over the years, but our mission—our first principles—are unchanged from day one.
The photos below focus on the people who launched The Post-American in 1971 and helped it to thrive and grow after our 1976 move to Washington, D.C., where it became Sojourners magazine. The publication was started by students at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Ill., north of Chicago—students who were convinced that much of the church, and the evangelical part of it in particular, was wrong in its support of the Vietnam War, wrong in its approach to racism and racial justice, and at best inadequate in its awareness that the gospel calls disciples of Jesus Christ to be agents of change in our fallen world.
As you’ll see in these photos, community, worship, and public actions for social justice were all part of the job description for those who put out the magazine—there was little separation between magazine work and our socially engaged life together in Christian community. After 50 years, we’re still strong believers in an integrated life of faith and social justice, and we try to tell that story in every issue of Sojourners. We hope you enjoy this look back at our earliest roots.
—The Editors
New and Noteworthy: Prisoner-Poet, Serenade, and More
Above, Serenade and Atando Cabos
Unsung Belonging
Serenade is a collaborative album dedicated to LGBTQIA+ youth of faith. Produced by Gretta and Kyle Miller of the band Tow’rs, this multigenre and multiartist project explores the “hope and heartbreak” of living as a queer person of faith. Beloved Arise Media.
New & Noteworthy: Neurodiversity, Trees, and More
Tree Rings
The three short films in The Trees Remember series span 60 years and feature Black women in the outdoors, reframing narrow historical narratives of who has access to nature. Directed by Angela Tucker, they portray memory, relationships, and belonging in the outdoors. TuckerGurl Inc.
Unique Pathways
On the Spectrum: Autism, Faith, and the Gifts of Neurodiversity chronicles author Daniel Bowman Jr.’s life as an autistic Christian, starting from his unexpected diagnosis at 35. Illuminating the ways that neurodiversity enriches us all, this book debunks misconceptions and offers hope. Brazos Press.
New & Noteworthy: Sexuality, Grandmothers, and More
Ruby's Refrain
Siân Heder’s heartwarming feature film Coda captures the love and struggles of a deaf household and their family business. As a CODA (child of deaf adults) and the only hearing person in her family of four, 17-year-old Ruby faces a dilemma when she discovers her talent for singing. Pathé.
Sally’s Story
In Affirming: A Memoir of Faith, Sexuality, and Staying in the Church, Sally Gary shares her journey through isolation and profound community as she opens fruitful conversations on sexuality and following Christ. Eerdmans.
New & Noteworthy: ‘Pink Noise,’ Muslim Writers, and More
‘I Finally See’
Prerelease tracks “Church Girl” and “Safe Passage” pave the way for British singer-songwriter Laura Mvula’s forthcoming album Pink Noise. The former gospel choir member brings introspection and the ’80s sounds of her youth to her third record, perfect for dancing. Atlantic Records.
A Common Thread
Muslim American Writers at Home: Stories, Essays and Poems of Identity, Diversity and Belonging gathers a range of Muslim identity and experience in the U.S. and Canada. Authors in the anthology share dreams and memories, shatter stereotypes, and speak to one another. Freedom Voices.