My brother's keeper

"The plain fact is there are some Americans who, in the aggregate, are consistently doing worse in our society — groups that have had the odds stacked against them in unique ways that require unique solutions; groups who’ve seen fewer opportunities that have spanned generations. … 50 years after Dr. King talked about his dream for America’s children, the stubborn fact is that the life chances of the average black or brown child in this country lags behind by almost every measure, and is worse for boys and young men."  President Obama launching his 'My brother's keeper' initiative this week.

"The initial investigation of the murder of Stephen Lawrence was seriously flawed and deserving of severe criticism. The underlying causes of the failure were more troublesome and potentially more sinister. The impact of incompetence, racism and corruption on the investigation had been the subject of much evidence and debate. The Inquiry concluded that institutional racism affected the murder investigation, the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and police services elsewhere, as well as other institutions and organisations." Mark Ellison QC reporting on the British police investigation into the murder of a young black man, Stephen Lawrence.

With all eyes on Ukraine it would have been easy to miss these other two significant events this week. As we enter Lent the failings of our own societies ought to concern us as much as those elsewhere.

Every black teenage boy (or girl) deprived of justice is a nail in the coffin of righteous society, a nail in the cross of Christ who died for that girl, that boy.