Dialog to Examine Impact of Criminal Justice Reform, Theology on School Children of Color

DALLAS (SMU) – Theology shapes the practices of religious institutions, including their work for social change. The criminal justice reform movement shapes the way society upholds the constitutional rights of all Americans. How do these two potent social forces influence conditions that set a path from school to prison for many children of color today?

An interdisciplinary dialogue, “The ABC’s of Theology and Criminal Justice Reform on the Lives of School Children of Color,” set for Monday, Oct. 15 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.in Elizabeth Perkins Prothro Hall (5901 Bishop Boulevard) at Perkins School of Theology – Southern Methodist University, will bring together scholars from the Perkins School of Theology and the Dedman School of Law:

• Dr. Harold Recinos, Perkins professor of church and society and the president of the Oscar Romero Center for Community Health & Education in Dallas;
• Dr. Pamela Metzger, a Dedman law professor and the director of SMU’s Deason Criminal Justice Reform Center.

This event is jointly sponsored by Perkins, the school’s Center for the Study of Latino/a Christianity and Religions, and the United Methodist Church’s General Commission on Religion and Race.

The dialogue is free and open to the public, but those wishing to attend are asked to register online here. Parking passes are available.

The evening will also include a reception and mini-concert by young violinists from Ubuntu Music Project, an after-school music program for underserved students in Dallas. The project’s executive director is Perkins graduate Nicole Melki (M.A.M. ’17).

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Perkins School of Theology, founded in 1911, is one of five official University-related schools of theology of The United Methodist Church. Degree programs include the Master of Divinity, Master of Sacred Music, Master of Theological Studies, Master of Arts in Ministry, Master of Theology, Doctor of Ministry, and Doctor of Pastoral Music as well as the Ph.D., in cooperation with The Graduate Program in Religious Studies at SMU's Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences.