St. Therese Parish Community Responds
To Police Brutality & Institutional Racism

The foundation of St. Therese Catholic Church and Academy, established in 1926 in the Madrona neighborhood, reflects a longstanding and strong commitment to social justice. We are a strong and vibrant parish community, proud of our racial, ethnic, and socio-economic diversity. We have strived to be inclusive, loving and accepting of all those who come to worship with us. We have grown with the support and contributions of numerous African American families, many of whom are still a part of our parish today as friends, leaders and fellow Catholics. Deeply involved in the racial and political tensions of the 1950s and ‘60s, St. Therese Parish has always risen up against racial injustice in a unique and challenging way.

We are distressed and outraged at the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and most recently Rayshard Brooks along with countless other Black and Brown people who were killed by police while in custody or by others. We lament the suffering that all Black and Brown people have experienced from the racial inequities that permeate our systems and social fabric.  

Our Catholic faith compels us to recognize and stand against the systemic racism and racial injustices which predominantly affect our Black and Brown brothers and sisters. 

"We love because He first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And He has given us this command: anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister." 1 John 4:19-21

The St. Therese community is a spiritual home where TOGETHER we worship with joy, work for justice and grow in God's love. But many of our own African American members, both young and old, have experienced the effects of racism either individually or systemically. 

We pledge to act and be continuously vigilant against complicity, complacency and silence in the face of racism and we are committed to eradicating this sin forever. We stand together in the fight for equity in every system, as one unified parish family, in solidarity with all Black and Brown communities, our neighbors and our friends. 

St. Therese Parish Leadership
June 16, 2020