Bridging the Rivers of Difference
A Proclamation of Unity in Resistance
Will be published approx. on 2. July 2026
Book
Hardback
256 pages
978-1-64065-967-4 (ISBN)
Description
A call for unity in the face of growing dehumanization of marginalized people-from a powerful voice in the dialogue on racism today.
The walk back on a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. The silence across communities as the undocumented, primarily Latino population faces attack. The grandstanding of nationalism and the intersection with white supremacy and ideas of genetic superiority. These issues are not temporary but rather exist on a continuum in the history of racism and divisiveness. Meeks, who has spent a lifetime fighting for racial justice and healing, offers collaborative strategies to fight systemic racism--together. She also addresses current cases with civil rights impact in areas such as zoning, voting, and immigration, and delivers a powerful message about the need for unity in combating these destructive decisions.
This moment, Meeks argues, shows that othering is alive and well in America and a continuation of white supremacy. She also believes the United States has been complicit in continuing the destabilization of other countries and the cycles of ethnic cleansing. Within Black communities, she explains, there is a hesitance to join the conversations, but the fight is one that demands solidarity. Resistance is necessary to dispel hierarchies of human value and combat the failure of institutions.
Praise for The Night is Long but Light Comes in the Morning
"Readers will be challenged and changed by this moving work." -Publishers Weekly
The walk back on a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. The silence across communities as the undocumented, primarily Latino population faces attack. The grandstanding of nationalism and the intersection with white supremacy and ideas of genetic superiority. These issues are not temporary but rather exist on a continuum in the history of racism and divisiveness. Meeks, who has spent a lifetime fighting for racial justice and healing, offers collaborative strategies to fight systemic racism--together. She also addresses current cases with civil rights impact in areas such as zoning, voting, and immigration, and delivers a powerful message about the need for unity in combating these destructive decisions.
This moment, Meeks argues, shows that othering is alive and well in America and a continuation of white supremacy. She also believes the United States has been complicit in continuing the destabilization of other countries and the cycles of ethnic cleansing. Within Black communities, she explains, there is a hesitance to join the conversations, but the fight is one that demands solidarity. Resistance is necessary to dispel hierarchies of human value and combat the failure of institutions.
Praise for The Night is Long but Light Comes in the Morning
"Readers will be challenged and changed by this moving work." -Publishers Weekly
Reviews / Votes
"In Bridging the Rivers of Difference: A Proclamation of Unity in Resistance, Catherine Meeks asks readers to confront a difficult reality... She raises uncomfortable but absolutely necessary questions for each of us." * Marybeth Gasman, Forbes * "Without a vision, the people perish. Catherine Meeks has a vision for a way forward which is presented in Bridging the Rivers of Difference: A Proclamation of Unity in Resistance that challenges Asian Americans, Latinos, African Americans and Indigenous People to remember their ancestral heritage and its empowerment as they seek ways to form strong collaborative partnerships in their resistance to racism." * The Honorable Andrew Young, former Ambassador to the United Nations * "This book is about the painful gap between the de jure and de facto realities associated with the preamble of our constitution "that all men are created equal." Meeks calls on four major underrepresented groups-Indigenous Peoples, African-Americans, Asian Americans, and Latin Americans-to band together and invites whites who are willing to be more than allies and become pilgrims to join in the effort to overturn the systemic racism that is embedded within our culture. The frustration and yet the hope in this sensitive and important voice needs to be heard by Americans who want us to become the America we long to be, not the America we have been and are." * Gregory E. Sterling, The Reverend Henry L. Slack Dean, The Lillian Claus Professor of New Testament, Yale Divinity School * "By prioritizing the experiences and agency of people of color to work for themselves in solidarity with one another, Catherine Meeks invites us to frame coalition building through an honest reckoning with our past. She lays bare the ways that many anti-racist movements and teachings have actually deepened the divides between the four major groups of people of color, and in doing so offers us a humbling and challenging path to a more authentic form of unity and resistance." * Heidi J. Kim, Executive Director, The Episcopal Coalition for Racial Equity and Justice * "In her latest work, Dr. Catherine Meeks explores the psychological, spiritual, physical, and historical forces that communities of color have struggled to overcome within and between communities that form the legacy of white supremacy in America. Dr. Meeks guides the reader through generations of systemic racism to the present-day experience in the United States of a governmental regime that is once again weaponizing difference for the social and economic gain of white men. This book is essential reading for people of color and white people as a guide to moving from participating in systems of oppression towards becoming a united community of allies and co-resisters. Through the reciprocity of sharing our unique cultural gifts and wisdom traditions grounded in pre-colonial teachings, the Beloved Community can and will create a lifegiving and healing narrative for a way forward together, a story grounded in respect for creation and in the celebration of our diversity." * The Rev. Rachel Taber-Hamilton, Shackan First Nation, Nicola Tribal Association * "This powerful and beautifully written book arrives at a moment when its insights are not only relevant but urgently needed. With clarity, courage, and intellectual rigor, it examines how racial division is rooted in the practice of "othering," while challenging readers to confront the dynamics of competition, exclusion, and the damaging narrative of inferiority that continues to shape society. Each chapter thoughtfully guides the reader from diagnosis to possibility-moving from hard truths about oppression toward the difficult but necessary work of dismantling old structures and building sustainable bridges across difference. The author's voice is both incisive and compassionate, inviting readers to imagine new paradigms of solidarity, allyship, and collective resistance. Timely, provocative, and deeply humane, this book is an essential contribution to the ongoing conversation about justice, unity, and our shared future. It is a work that informs the mind, stirs the conscience, and calls each of us to participate in building a more equitable world." * Jerlena Griffin-Desta, Ph.D., Retired Vice President Strategic Initiatives & Diversity, Sonoma State University * "With erudite precision, a profound sense of humanity, and characteristic good humor, Bridging the Rivers of Difference accompanies the reader on a rich journey to uncover the pathways for universal sacred worth and shared prosperity. Challenging yet deeply soul-nourishing, Dr. Meeks makes it evident that a more harmonious world is not a distant dream, but is within our collective grasp." * Elliot Watts, attorney, Chair, Bishop's Advisory Committee, Church of the Common Ground *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Product notice
Laminated cover
Illustrations
Illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 215 mm
Width: 139 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-64065-967-4 (9781640659674)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Catherine Meeks, PhD, is the winner of the President Joseph R. Biden Lifetime Achievement Award for her decades of work for racial justice. A nationally recognized speaker, radio commentator, and writer for publications including Baptist News, she is the former executive director of the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing and author of six books, including The Night is Long, but Light Comes in the Morning: Meditations on Racial Healing. Dr. Meeks is the founder of Turquoise and Lavender, an institute for transformation and healing. She holds a master's degree in social work from Clark Atlanta University, a PhD from Emory University, and honorary doctorates from Virginia Theological Seminary, the Seminary of the Southwest, and the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale University. Dr. Meeks lives in Atlanta, Georgia.