I Know Why the Culture War Stings

Abstract

From debates over baking cakes and same-sex marriage to wearing masks and worshiping together, the “religious freedom” argument in the United States has been foundational to white evangelicals’ political grievance. The pandemic’s capacity to amplify their expressed fears raises important questions about how “religious freedom” operates as a weapon in a larger historical culture-war tool kit that is both raced and classed. In light of white evangelicals’ religious freedom arguments against wearing masks, in what ways might Black Christians see the religious freedom debate as a distraction from the larger, more immediate existential threats to black freedom in the United States, namely COVID-19 and extrajudicial violence? Through reviews of religious media (sermons, news stories, and viral videos), this chapter explores Black and white religionists’ understanding of religious freedom, given the high stakes of the contemporary moment.