Issue link: http://maconmagazine.uberflip.com/i/1184228
3 8 | M A C O N M A G A Z I N E F E B R U A R Y / M A R C H 2 0 1 9 F or 15 years, a now-retired Mercer University professor has lead a Macon effort promoting racial reconciliation. Called Building the Beloved Community, the work centers on a symposium at Mercer founded by John Marson Dunaway, professor emeritus of French and interdisciplinary studies. According to Dunaway, the symposium and resulting programs have been guided by his faith in Jesus Christ and by a concept advanced by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. concerning reconciliation and "building the beloved community." "King didn't originate the term," Dunaway said, "but he spoke and wrote of it often and advanced it more than anyone. It was a guiding principle in his nonviolent work to end segregation and discrimination, obtain civil rights and establish racial harmony. In a 1957 speech, he said, 'e aftermath of nonviolence is the creation of the beloved community. e aftermath of nonviolence is redemption. e aftermath of nonviolence is reconciliation. e aftermath of violence is emptiness and bitterness.' " BRIDGING the DIVIDE Building the Beloved Community promotes racial healing through Christ-based approach BY MICHAEL W. PANNELL PHOTOGRAPHY BY JESSICA WHITLEY BETTER TOGETHER At the Tubman Museum, the Rev. Jason McClendon, Mercer's Matt Harper, the Rev. Clifford Little, and Building the Beloved Community Symposium founder John Dunaway join hands signifying the racial reconciliation they and others are working toward for a brighter future for all in Macon.