400 years of systemic racism and white supremacy in the United States has caused horrific damage to people and communities of color. Whites who acknowledge this damage and want to help heal the wounds of racism, however, sometimes are paralyzed by the weight of this history. How can we get beyond unproductive guilt so as to contribute to campaigns for real racial justice? In our June 28, 2019 Sunday Platform, Hugh Taft-Morales explored how he used history to recommit himself to anti-racism activism.
Hugh Taft-Morales serves as Leader of the Philadelphia Ethical Society and the Baltimore Ethical Society and is President of the National Leaders Council of the American Ethical Union (AEU). Hugh taught philosophy and history for twenty-five years in Washington, D. C., after which he transitioned into Ethical Culture Leadership. In April of 2009 he graduated from the Humanist Institute and was certified as an Ethical Culture Leader by the American Ethical Union (AEU) in 2010.
He serves as humanist clergy for the Ethical Culture, a 140+ old non-theist movement dedicated to honoring the worth of every person, growing ethical relationships, and building social justice. He is committed fully to the Ethical Society slogan – “deed before creed.” It matters more how you treat others than your stated belief system. Ending suffering requires heart, mind, and most of all action.
Born and raised in Connecticut, Taft-Morales graduated with a B.A. cum laude in American History from Yale University, 1979, and an M.A. in Philosophy from the University of Kent at Canterbury, England, 1986 He lives in Takoma Park, Maryland, with his wife, Maureen, a Latin American analyst for the Congressional Research Service. They have three wonderful adult children – Sean, Maya, and Justin. Hugh’s hobbies include yoga, dancing, singing and playing guitar, and “watching way too much sports.”
