“No Time for Retribution,” an Op-Ed from the New Jersey Coalition of Religious Leaders, was published today in the Newark Star-Ledger and online at NJ.com.

The piece was written by The Rt. Rev. William Stokes, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey, Rabbi Matthew Gewirtz, president of the New Jersey Coalition of Religious Leaders, and Imam W. Deen Shareef, convener of the Council of Imams in New Jersey.

“We do not condone the violence and vandalism occurring in the cities and communities of our nation and our state,” write the religious leaders. “We do, however, recognize that this eruption is, in part, a consequence of long-simmering frustration at the centuries of violence and injustice done to Black Americans over our history.”

The trio goes on to challenge White Americans to a new way of thinking about racism.

“Racism is a ‘white problem,’” they write, one that “continues to bring great harm … to people of color. It will take sincere truth-telling, listening, humility, confession, intentionality, genuine sacrifice and resolve by whites in this country to dismantle the racist systems and structures they have created and work with those who have been historically marginalized to bring about a just society.”

The piece is available in its entirety online at NJ.com