01: "Not One Drop" of African Blood - Brigham Young’s “Negro” Curse of Cain

In this new series on Mormon Leadership, historian Matt Harris discusses Mormonism's early racism, focusing on the priesthood and temple ban for Black members. He explores the church's opposition to civil rights, the experiences of Black Latter-day Saints like Jane Manning James and Elijah Abel, and the evolving theology around race. Harris challenges misconceptions about prophetic revelation and the origins of the ban, shedding light on this complex and painful history.

We are thrilled to announce that we have reached our donation goal to compensate Dr. Matt Harris for his contributions to this series. We sincerely thank everyone who supported this effort. While the goal to pay Matt has been met, producing this series incurred significant costs for the Open Stories Foundation. If you find value in this content and want to help cover these expenses and support future productions, we encourage you to donate at https://www.mormonstories.org/donate/ Your generosity makes a difference—thank you!

Show Notes

YouTube

Purchase Matt Harris’ book, Second-Class Saints: Black Mormons and the Struggle for Racial Equality

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