This past weekend, as I opened my Facebook feed, a powerful image caught my attention: “Say their names.”
That image is the backdrop for my thoughts this Monday morning.
It was as if I were hearing a voice.
We all hear voices all the time as we use one of the five senses in our daily lives: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.
I’m also aware that you don’t have to be blessed with all five senses to interact with the world around you.
The quote “We see with the eyes, but we see with the brain as well” by Oliver Sacks is that reminder.
We see with the eyes, but we see with the brain as well. – Inspiring Quotes
As I thought about today’s blog and how many of us use our brains, we can hear things that prompt us to think.
Brain’s Sensory Processing: Exploring the Five Senses
As I sat in my pew, preparing for Mass this past weekend, I could hear people whispering and talking in the background before Mass began.
I have always been one who seeks solitude before Mass, preparing to hear the Word of God.
This week, for those participating in Lent, there is a passage in Matthew 17:1-9 tied to the Transfiguration, in which Jesus took Peter, James, and John, the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
Matthew 17:1-9 NIV – The Transfiguration – After six days – Bible Gateway
It was the voice they heard, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
I’m also aware that Christians all over the world are persecuted every day, and we must be mindful that each hears a different voice coming from their Antagonist or the villain.
How well we listen to the voice of God is up to us, and how we respond day to day is also up to us.
Often in my gratitude journal, I write about how I was able not to be taken in by the cares of the world.
Whereas I let my humanity get in front of my divinity.
As I reflect on the picture or image, “Say their names,” I’m wondering how those families are dealing with the loss of a child, brother, sister, husband, or wife.
What do George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray, Botham Jean, Philando Castile, Sandra Bland, Michael Brown, Atatiana Jefferson, Stephon Clark, and Daunte Wright all have in common?
They were all Black individuals who police officers killed in a high-profile case of police brutality.
Timeline of Black Americans killed by police: 2014-2022
I believe it’s important to hear the voices of reason and not put ourselves in compromising positions.
Today, we can see a correlation between the Civil Rights Movement and Black Lives Matter, as both share the goal of achieving racial equality and justice for African Americans.
We have now moved into something beyond the Civil Rights Movement and Black Lives Matter, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in the neighborhood.
“Currently, there are approximately 73,000 immigrants held in ICE custody, the highest number ever recorded, and it is an 84% increase from January 2025. Over 70% of them have no criminal record, and 95% have never been convicted of a violent crime — a blatant disregard of Trump’s repeated invocation to target violent criminals. Shockingly, 32 people have died in ICE custody during 2025, the agency’s deadliest year in more than two decades. Since the start of 2026, six people have already died in ICE custody.”
The ICE Raids — What You Need to Know | HIAS
As we honor the leadership and impact of Jesse Jackson, a protégé of Martin Luther King Jr., who played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement, may he rest in peace. Let us hear his voice as well. I’m sure that as he takes his eternal rest, he will hear the voices of Peter, James, and John, the brother of James, who heard, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
A look at Jesse Jackson’s decades of civil rights advocacy | PBS News
I’ll close today’s thoughts with these two quotes:
“They say we die twice – once when the last breath leaves our body and once when the last person we know says our name.” – Al Pacino
“A name pronounced is the recognition of the individual to whom it belongs.” – Henry David Thoreau
Today, think about the names you have lost and how you are choosing to remember them. As you reflect on the deep emotional and social impact of those names, it should serve as a reminder of the importance of naming in our lives and the stories that names tell us.
Good morning CM, and thanks for sharing your thoughts on those that are no longer with us. Likewise, it is important to have empathy for those being targeted by ICE and that have experienced law enforcement brutality.
Taking time to reflect on names has become something routine that I do, but I have continued to notice that the work of my ancestors, MLK Jr., Jesse Jackson and others has led to more questions. Other than staying in prayer for hopes of brighter days, I haven’t seen the next activist that has been groomed or under one’s tutelage to fight for equality. On the contrary, I do see methods or strategies that mirror the Civil Rights Movement from the 50s and 60s – to include the deliberate action to erase the history of the Black community.
To this point, saying the name of the Most High provides the most comfort.
Terrance,
Greetings, what a great response. I say the name of the “Most High God” all the time, and I like how you injected that into today’s blog. Having empathy is important as we continue to see history repeat itself.
You’re right, we haven’t seen the next activist who has been groomed or under one’s tutelage to fight for equality. However, we have had a President Barack Hussein Obama II, the 44th president of the United States, from 2009 to 2017, help carry the torch.
McKinley
Good morning. I guess I look at things a little differently. I appreciate all the sacrifices and work that people like MLK, Jesse Jackson, and all the other civil rights workers, but I don’t know them personally. I met Jesse Jackson years ago but still do not know him personally. I think about the people I know personally like my grandfathers, George and Alfred, my grandmothers, Amelia and Thelma, My father, George, My mother Blanche, and other relatives who had positive impact on my life. A person who was not a relative who had an impact on my life was a teacher of mine in High School, Sr. Claritus (Lorraine Rivers) who convinced me not to drop out of High School when I was a Senior. It was something about her that made me think that she cared about ME as a person, who she said had potential. She was easy to talk to and easy to listen to. I appreciate her very, very much. May she rest in peace. Amen.
Leonard,
Thank you for your insight into today’s blog. It’s good to see things differently. All the names you mentioned have helped shape you today. What a blessing. You and I are products of the Civil Rights movement, and I’m grateful for those who have paved the way for both of us to enjoy the quality of life we have. May your Claritus (Lorraine Rivers) rest in peace.
McKinley
Mckinley,
Thanks you for keeping their memory alive. As I woke up much too early this morning with only a few hours of sleep, I still have to count my blessing. I was able to get out of bed heathy and alive today, knowing that my family is here with me.
Scott,
Greetings,
Those are just one of the many things we can both be grateful for each day we are given breath in our lungs.
McKinley
We knew, loved, revered, honored and called GrandMa, OUR first paternal relative, “Born Free” in these United States of America. Almost daily, we think of the unnamed Women and Girls who stood, without clothing, on blocks as their very essence was auctioned, to men and women who would never honor their humanity, worth, value, or life. We were in the 8th. grade, standing on the front steps of Browns Chapel AMEZ Church in Selma, AL, the evening the March from Selma to Montgomery ‘s rally at the State Capitol ended. When the word came that “a woman had been killed” we began to cry because our Mother attended the March and we did not know her whereabouts. When they stated it was a “white woman.” our feelings off prospective loss, turned to empathy to the child)ren) who would not ever get a hug from their Mother. WE remember standing on a Greyhound Bus for 30 miles, while seats were available to those who were called “white” but the 7th. grade child was not protected, not valued, not allowed to sit, due to how God Almighty made her. Almost daily, we call the names of our known Ancestors who suffered the wrath and sacrificed their very bodies, so we could live almost “free lives.” We call the names of Medger Evers, whose Daughter we met a few months ago and what an honor! We had prayed for that family and wondered how they had been since their US Veteran Father was murdered in his car port. The Names we find ourself calling most, as a 73 almost 74 year old include the Name of God, relatives who have moved to their heavenly home, friends, neighbors, and those who yet breathe, loved and cherished by us. We “call our personal roll” of those we knew and those whose names and stories when have been taught. Honorable Men and Women who were often, as adults, were called “girl and / or boy.” We remember our great maternal aunt, Aunt Bo who starched the underwear(bras, panties, shorts, tee shirts, etc.) of her “employers” when they failed to pay her the agreed upon amount and immediately before she walked out of their life. WE often write their names on paper and wonder how they made it from day to day; how did they love and cherish their spouse, children, siblings, in laws, and those who worked to minimize them? How did they move forward, form families, attend worship services, honor their God, encourage their children to dream and become “somebody?” We offer gratitude to them, their spirit, their memory, for they are Worthy to be forever cherished and remembered.
Judge Pettway,
Thank you so much for the comment render about this blog. You have lived a blessed yet colorful life, with your experiences shared. You bring back so many memories when you mentioned standing waiting on the Greyhound Bus. Although the Greyhound Bus was my mode of transportation coming home when I was in the Army early in my career. I’m humbled by your words and insight. Thank You!
McKinley
“To God be the Glory.”
Amen!