clearwater forest

Racial Justice


Clearwater Forest is a transformative place, called to change lives in God’s woods and waters. Guided by our core principles, we know that we cannot be silent. Clearwater recognizes that there are a lot of people who are hurting in the world and in our community. Right now, we are focusing on the injustices against Black lives, and we are committed to fighting injustices everywhere.

Looking out into the world right now, we see the senseless killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Philando Castile, Jamar Clark, and thousands more children of God at the hands of a system that has continually been doing harm to Black communities. As Christians, we cannot stand by when we see the injustices right before us.

Jesus never shied away from doing the right thing, whether or not that put him in a difficult position. We feel that we are called to follow his example and stand against police brutality and all forms of systemic racism. Clearwater Forest stands firm in our Christian beliefs that each Black life is created in God’s image, because every human is created in God’s image. We commit to using our shared voices to speak against this systemic injustice.

To our Black siblings in Christ: we love you. We value your lives. We will do better, and be an open, just and welcoming space for you. The world we live in does not reflect what Christ has intended for us. Clearwater Forest has been blessed with incredible gifts of strong community, natural wonders, and presence of the Holy Spirit. We intend to create a diverse and inclusive community for any person who desires to experience these gifts.

We call on our greater Clearwater Family to join us in this next chapter. We must walk the path towards shared justice side by side. We ask you to help hold us accountable in our renewed commitment to step up, speak out, and take action for a more equitable future.

All of us at Clearwater love you and God loves you. We hope to see you soon.

⁠—The Clearwater Forest Summer Staff, Leadership Team, and Board of Directors
July 2020