Latasha Morrison, activist, speaker and diversity trainer, had a clear idea for her first book, Be the Bridge, in 2019. "I wanted it to be a stepping stone for people who didn't know what it means to have racial reconciliation in the church." To see it become a New York Times bestseller and be named 2021 Christian Book of the Year by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association? Morrison says, "Well, that was the gravy!"

Now, Morrison is back with a full plate. Her new book, Brown Faces, White Spaces (WaterBrook, May 21) goes beyond the church to examine the past, present, and possible future of BIPOC lives in America. In the book, Morrison burrows into the historic foundations and modern expressions of racism in nine institutional systems, from courts to sports, housing to healthcare. The chapter headings set the tone: "Healthcare (An inequitable Prescription)"; "Property Ownership (Land of Broken Promises)"; Sports ("Shut up and Dribble").

PW Talked with Morrison about her goals for Brown Faces, White Spaces.

Your book is short, sharp, and specific yet it's packed with historic events, court rulings, civics lessons, calls to action, personal stories, poems, and prayers, too. Why this approach?

When someone shares their story it invites you in. I invite people in with my personal story and then give historical context. History is important. If you don't know where you've been, you don't know where you are going. Many people can't see beyond their own experience, they don't see how systemic racism is baked into our DNA.

People will say, 'But my ancestors didn't enslave anyone' or "I never denied anyone a mortgage.' What do you say to them?

We can say, 'Oh, that happened back in history. It's not our fault. We didn't break it.' But that doesn't matter. It is still our collective responsibility to repair the damage of racism. We have inherited a mess but some people have benefited from the mess and others have not. We can't act like if we don't know about it, we're not responsible for repairing it. We don't get an out. As Christians, we should know this.

How do you guide people to become part of the solution?

You keep telling the truth. Racism is a sin. Learning how to fight it is a kind of discipleship. There is a difference between not knowing the truth and rejecting the truth. And there are living consequences for that rejection. In the Bible, people rejected the messages of the prophets. But those who have ears to hear and eyes to see, they may hear and they may see. This book is about how we can love our neighbors well and what that would look like in our systems.

Two or three years ago politicians, pastors, CEOs and university leaders were all talking about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Now, the acronym has become a slur and people sneer at "woke" in some camps. How much damage is this doing?

We have to look at why DEI came about in the first place. It was to repair broken systems. Equity is righting a wrong, creating space, giving everyone justice. People weaponize these DEI ideas because they are fearful of change or because they want power. It's a minority view but it's a very loud minority and their rollback of DEI is laced in racist ideology. It won't work. History keeps receipts. History catches up.

Who are the readers you have in mind?

My aim is to talk to people on the sidelines. It's not that they don't care about systemic racism. It's that they don't know what to do or where to go. I write, 'Here are your marching orders. Here's how you can take part and not be silent.' Creating righteousness and justice is the essence of the God we serve. The goal is oneness, not sameness. God created diversity. It is a song to be sung.

This book is the first of a two-book deal with WaterBrook. What are you working on now?

I have an outline but no title yet. My idea is to focus on stories about people who are ‘outliers’ in history. I am inspired by the people like those who rejected Hitler in his time, by the people who rejected slavery. Who are they? What did they say and why did they say it? We need to learn from these examples of how not to remain silent.