ENGLEWOOD, NJ (Sept 16, 2019) – Metro Community Church will host the Covenant Justice Coalition Conference October 18-19 with the theme, “‘The Presumption of Guilt’: The Church’s Response to an Unjust Criminal System.”
“We will focus on the pervasive pain to the individual, family, and community that results from an unjust criminal system,” organizers said. “We will provide a space to both lament and plan to intervene as a church.”
The conference will include speakers, workshops, and group discussions.
Registration is $95 per person before October 1. Late registration is $110. A group registration rate is available.
Speakers include:
Jennifer Eberhardt, social psychologist at Stanford University who studies the consequences of the psychological association between race and crime. She has begun working with law enforcement agencies to design interventions to improve policing and help agencies build and maintain trust with the communities they serve.
Edwin Raymond, sergeant with the New York Police Department who is featured in “Crime + Punishment,” a documentary that won a special jury award for “social impact” at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. He is the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit by 12 officers who allege that the city has pursued monthly quotas for arrests and summonses, which have been banned by the state and disproportionately impact communities of color.
Rahsaan Hall, director of the racial justice program for the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts. His previous work included serving as assistant district attorney for the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office in New York.
Dominique Gilliard, director of racial righteousness and reconciliation for the Evangelical Covenant Church’s Love Mercy Do Justice mission priority.
Michael Carrion, pastor of Promised Land Covenant Church. He also serves on the board and executive committee of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition, which is comprised of more than 3,000 Hispanic congregations.
Michelle Clifton-Soderstrom, professor of theology and ethics at North Park Theological Seminary.
The conference will take place at the Community Baptist Church in Englewood.
Visit the conference website for more information, including videos of the previous 2017 conference.
News Contact:
Stan Friedman
News and Online Editor
Evangelical Covenant Church
Stan.Friedman@covchurch.org
