Photo of ExodusFoundation event, © 2008 Tiona Fuller Photography
The Center for American Progress has released a list of 15 progressive religious leaders they predict will be important this year.
The first leader is Macky Alston, a vice-president of media at Auburn Theological School, and the filmmaker who won awards for his recent documentary on the Right Rev Gene Robinson, “Love Free or Die”.
They feature clergy in Ferguson, Missouri, including the Revs. Starsky Wilson and Traci Blackmon, who are working towards justice and reconciliation following the tragic death of Michael Brown.
Rev. Alison Harrington made national headlines for protecting undocumented immigrants from deportation last year; she makes the list as a leader in bearing witness to the trials of the undocumented.
Rev. Dr. Madeline McClenney-Sadler, founder of the ExodusFoundation, has fought mass-incarceration with African American churches and the broader community. They project that her expertise may be tapped in bipartisan efforts to reform the criminal justice system.
Rabbi Angela Warnick Buchdahl, the first woman to be ordained as both a cantor and a rabbi, lead the Hanukkah prayers at the White House, and has been recognized for her work in social justice and economic equality.
Sayyid M. Syeed, their fifteenth leader, has built a coalition to challenge State-sponsored torture and the oppression of religious minorities in Arab countries. He is the national director of the Office of Interfaith & Community Alliances for the Islamic Society of North America, the largest Muslim organization in North America.
Do you think they missed a particular leader? Who would you add to their list of faith leaders to watch?
Posted by David Streever