DIFFERENCES START CONVERSATIONS
With equality for all a goal, Chris Lassiter gets people talking
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STAUNTON, Va. – It’s a solemn Chris Lassiter, not flashing the smile that the 41-year-old is so well-known for around his hometown of Staunton, Virginia.
He’s sitting on the front steps of his house situated in a historic African-American neighborhood of this small city in the Shenandoah Valley. It’s two days after the violence of Charlottesville, and although Staunton is 45 miles and a mountain range away, the Unite the Right rally, the clash of supremacists and protesters and the one violent death, have taken their toll here, too.
Lassiter looks into the camera and tells those watching him on Facebook Live that he understands it can be emotionally draining. He tells them that he feels a bit distraught over everything that happened. It’s still difficult, 48 hours after the events, to comprehend what happened.
But then, in typical Lassiter form, he also tells the viewers that he wants to do whatever he can to be part of the solution. And so he invites those watching to join him the following Saturday morning for an hour of prayer.
And then he extends another offer.
“Right after that, just a couple of friends and I are getting together to talk,” he says. “The friends who have said, ‘Hey, I’ll come’ are a diverse group, so it will be different cultures, different takes on theology, all of that stuff. We’re just going to get together and talk and help each other work through it.”
Anyone who wants to join the group is welcome.
How much can talking help? Lassiter believes a lot.
One of Lassiter’s favorite sayings is “Proximity breeds compassion.” He has seen far too many arguments over social media, arguments that resolve nothing and ratchet anger, leaving everyone more entrenched.
But, he believes, having face-toface talks with those who disagree with you can actually start the healing. “A huge part of being human and showing you that I value you is taking the time to listen,” he said. “And not just listen to form a response, but just listen because you’re important enough to listen to.”
He knows the black experience in the United States has been a painful one.
He admits that can be infuriating. At the same time, he wants to stay focused on the end goal of equality for everyone.
“It’s all justice for all people at all times, and doing that graciously,” Lassiter said. “And at the end I think that helps you fight for reconciliation rather than just your own people group.”
After Charlottesville, he held a community discussion on both a Saturday and Sunday morning, a week after the violence. One of the discussions was at a coffee shop and the other at a fast-food restaurant. Combined, the two sessions drew more than 30 people.
“We had more people and we probably also had a more diverse group than we’ve had.”
He has been a teacher in the high school from which he graduated. He has been a Young Life leader, he has led Bible study for incarcerated youths, he has been a campus minister. He’s been a newspaper reporter. Lassiter is constantly trying to find ways to serve the community he loves.
“One of the things I wanted to do,” he said, “was put the personhood back in people as we have those conversations.”