In The Myth of the American Dream in the section on power, I tried to raise a question that troubled me when I began to pay attention to how certain neighborhoods are policed: how is a Christian supposed to act when some of our neighbors want to kill our other neighbors?

I tell a story of a neighborhood association meeting where an older white woman asked the police why didn’t just lock up all the”bad people” (her way of saying “thugs”). The police officer said he wished they had 1,000 more beds in the jail, but there was no room.

Then the woman pantomimed holding a gun and shooting someone, and said that’s how she would take care of it if she were an officer. The police officer laughed and said “I see where you are coming from!”

I realized then my imagination had been shaped to go and be a good neighbor/witness to certain communities. But really what was needed was a deep well of love to consistently confront my neighbors who wanted to kill my other neighbors.

What makes this more difficult, of course, is that police officers have access to power that my other neighbors do not. As a Christian, this absolutely matters. God in the scriptures has an eye on the poor and powerless, and so should we.

So. I don’t get to wish certain neighbors of mine like that older white woman ceased to exist. Instead I need to show up, day after day, and confront them. I need to love all my neighbors, and hold those in power accountable for their actions.

In all of these discussions you might find yourself in—with neighbors or family members or Facebook friends. Remember: hold power accountable. Power will try and shift the game, and blame the oppressed. Love is not letting power set the rules for human dignity.