On a Vlad TV interview that was released over the weekend, music artist Lecrae addressed the controversial discussion he had with Pastor Louie Giglio of Passion City Church in Atlanta that went viral over the summer.
Lecrae admitted that he “could’ve did better” and recalls feeling shocked at the pastor’s comments that slavery was a “blessing” for the white community.
“It wasn’t like a confrontational talk,” he said. “When you come in [those] environments, it’s not like a debate, so you’re kind of — you’re thinking y’all going to be on the same page, so I wasn’t really on an aggressive side, so when he said the slavery part, I slick didn’t hear it initially because I was ready to say what I had to say. So, I’m just sitting there with my ADD self nodding.”
Lecrae had just come off of protesting the night earlier and he said it left him in a mind state that unprepared him for the pastor’s statements.
“I was just shocked, I was just caught off guard,” he lamented. “It’s not what he was trying to say, but it still came out. It’s like the worst analogy you can give. I think what he was trying to say was that white people have benefited from slavery. But, benefit and blessing [are] two different things. Blessing feels like a good positive thing. Benefit is like, you got it to take advantage of people, but that’s not how it came out of his mouth. So, it was just all bad.”
Lecrae said the situation had to be handled off stage, which was addressed with Giglio through a conversation.
The interview with DJ Vlad took an alarming detour when Vlad started making insensitive comments about respecting the wealthy.
Ironically, in what felt like another opportunity for entrapment for Lecrae, Vlad stated that it would’ve been unreasonable for the rapper to respond aggressively to Giglio’s comments in the midst of a very wealth Dan Cathy.
“Not to say that money is everything, but you’re sitting next to Dan Cathy who owns Chick-Fil-A, which is a private company. He has a net worth of $7.1 billion. Flipping over a table probably wouldn’t be the best idea in that type of situation with this person. Not to say money is everything. You shouldn’t compromise your own ideas over money. But, you also have to act your wage around people who have money where you have to act like an intelligent person and not just some ignorant, angry, angry, reactive human being.” #Sheesh
Lecrae proceeded to nod in agreement.
Watch the DJ Vlad Interview HERE
Back in June, Lecrae participated in a conversation about racism and social injustice with Giglio and Chick-Fil-A CEO Dan Cathy. During the conversation, Giglio referred to slavery as a blessing to the confusion of many.
“We understand the curse that was slavery, white people do and we say that was bad,” Giglio said. “But, we miss the blessing of slavery that it actually built up the framework for the world that white people live in and lived in. A lot of people call this white privilege and when you say those two words, it just is like a fuse goes off for a lot of white people because they don’t want somebody telling them to check their privilege — I think it may be a great thing for me to call it white blessing. That I’m living in the blessing of the curse that happened generationally that allowed me to grow up in Atlanta.”
Although Lecrae tried his best to provide the perspective of black people during the discussion, many online critics found his rebuttal overwhelmingly passive.
“We hate to use that term, privilege or blessing, but even the idea that you have the ability to dismiss is a privilege,” Lecrae responded to the pastor. “You have the ability to not think about it. I cannot change my skin tone. I cannot live another day without recognizing my blackness.”
The christian-based church, which has locations in Atlanta and Washington D.C., faced backlash online as people pointed out the racial bias and hypocrisy of religion.
“The very fact that some white people see their status on the totem pole in the United States as a blessing dismisses the horrific history that led to those “blessings”, one commenter said.
“To hide behind christianity also further explains why some white people can’t see the flaws in their ideologies,” said another post. “Is it a blessing that you had to step on the backs of others to obtain your mighty and privileged existence?”
Giglio would later publicly apologize, but many people felt like it was disingenuous.
Lecrae responded to the criticism on Twitter, “The mans choice of words wasn’t the best but I got his point. Who’s putting their career, freedom, and life on the line…me. If anyone has the right to be upset it’s me.”
Watch the DJ Vlad Interview HERE
Honestly, Lacrae is going to have to learn how to speak up for himself. If he does not agree with what a person is saying and he knows it will upset his business ventures and the consumers he serves, then it is in his best interest to say to people like Giglio and Vlad in response, “I don’t share the same sentiments, but I respect or don’t respect your opinion.”
In the South, it is common for some black people to be raised as non-confrontational, “get along” people and there’s good reason for it. Black people have suffered a lot in the South from slavery to segregation, and the injustices continue with small country towns still operating as bigoted and racists institutions of power and control over the lives of people of color.
However, with the impact of Martin Luther King Jr., the Civil Rights Movement and an overwhelming presence of Christianity structuring the southern parts of the U.S., it is no wonder why black people don’t want to rock the boat too much, hence the responses of people such as T.I., Killer Mike, Bun B, Shekinah Jo Anderson and many more during the George Floyd protests. They just think differently.
So, when Lacrae nods his head, it’s not so much in agreement, but moreso a habit of not being confrontational. But, these days, it’s time that Lacrae shake that habit before it ruins his standing with the black community and brings on labels that misrepresent him.
