Greg Erlandson’s “Racism, genocide, and more: Getting comfortable with the uncomfortable” (AngelusNews.com, April 30) rightly urges us to confront the evils of racism — not just in their abstract form, but in their devastating consequences: violence against the innocent.

But I found myself caught on one line: “And yet they did. And do.”

No, sir. We did. We do. The temptation to speak anthropologically, as if the perpetrators are always others, risks distancing ourselves from the very sin we are called to confront.

Racism is not a relic of a distant tribe. Genocide is not the work of monsters. These are the sins of humanity — and we are not exceptions. None of us escapes implication, even if we have not raised our hands in violence.

When I look upon Christ on the cross, I do not see the results of others’ actions. I see the results of mine. That is the uncomfortable truth at the center of our faith: We are not innocent bystanders in the face of evil. We are active participants unless we actively repent and resist.

The author is right: We must face the horror of our history and present. But let us not shield ourselves behind abstractions. Let us say, with trembling honesty, “We have done this. We still do.” Only then can healing begin.