On Wednesday morning June 19 (Juneteenth), the Right Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton, bishop of Maryland, will testify in the House Judiciary subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties during a hearing on bill H.R. 40, which calls for a commission to be set up to “To address the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery in the United States and the 13 American colonies between 1619 and 1865 and to establish a commission to study and consider a national apology and proposal for reparations for the institution of slavery, its subsequent de jure and de facto racial and economic discrimination against African-Americans, and the impact of these forces on living African-Americans, to make recommendations to the Congress on appropriate remedies, and for other purposes.” (see full text of bill here) The bill has 57 co-sponsors and falls under the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution and Civil Justice.

Last month, Bishop Sutton issued a pastoral letter to our diocese, which was followed by a resolution affirming the letter at our annual convention. It passed unanimously and calls for deep and intentional study on the subject of reparations, as well as proposes ways in which the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland can help shape a better future through ministry programs to lessen the impact of the legacy of slavery. (See full text of letter and resources here) “The Diocese of Maryland has said ‘Yes’ to the principle of reparations,” Bishop Sutton said following the passage of the resolution.

The witness list for Wednesday’s hearing includes actor Danny Glover, author Ta-Nehisi Coates, documentary maker and Episcopalian Katrina Browne, Bishop Eugene Taylor Sutton, economist Julianne Malveaux, and Loyola Law School professor Eric Miller.

Media contact: Ms. Carrie Graves, 410-467-1399, cgraves@episcopalmaryland.org

The Episcopal Diocese of Maryland has more than 100 parishes in 10 counties and the City of Baltimore in western, central and southern Maryland. It is a part of The Episcopal Church and the worldwide Anglican Communion.