By Zuleyka Zevallos, PhD
The Atlantic has followed Rev. Tuck Taylor, a mother of two and an ordained elder of the United Methodist Church in North Carolina, USA. She is one of “thousands” of citizens who have coordinated a series of civil disobedience protests against various social welfare issues. They call their protest “Moral Monday,” a designated day where citizens descend upon official public buildings to protest using music, speeches and prayer. Ordinary citizens, academics and clerics volunteer to lead the protests and nominate themselves to be arrested in order to protest diverse concerns such as cuts to unemployment and health assistance, taxes and repeal of environmental measures.
While the Reverend may lose her job with her Church, she sees that it is her civil and religious duty to voice her discontent with her local government. The Reverend says:
“There are no unclean people — only unclean systems.”
This is a great case study for studying the intersections of the sociology of religion and the sociology of politics. Continue reading “There Are No Unclean People, Only Unclean Systems”: The Sociology of Religion and the Delivery of Social Justice