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Mounting his cellphone on a tripod on the flat roof, Father Shovelain prayed for the repose of the soul of Daunte Wright, 20, who was shot and killed April 11 while struggling with officers who were trying to arrest him on an outstanding warrant.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (CNS) -- After a night of protests and vandalism April 11 in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, following the police shooting of Daunte Wright, Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda of St. Paul and Minneapolis urged prayers for justice and peace.

SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) -- Decrying a rise in racial violence especially against Asian Americans, including in San Francisco, a city that he said has always offered "a welcoming and stable home" to newcomers, Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone led a prayer service for unity, healing and peace April 10.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- When Catholic educators met virtually this year at their annual conference, they took a close look at racism and how teachers should talk about its existence and work to promote an anti-racist environment in their schools.

Asian and Pacific Islander Catholic groups and a number of Catholic bishops have joined their voices with others in calling for an end to violence and hate crimes against Americans of Asian and Pacific Island heritage.

After decades of criticism for its unabashed support of the Confederacy, "Maryland, My Maryland" is closer than ever to being removed as the official song of the Free State.

Just before 8 a.m. March 22, nine people gathered outside St. Olaf Parish in downtown Minneapolis in a garden dedicated to St. Francis to pray that saint's famous prayer: "Lord, make me an instrument of your peace."

After he returned from Rome where Pope Francis elevated him to the College of Cardinals, children at Catholic schools in the Washington Archdiocese drew pictures of Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory wearing his new red hat.

In the days following the March 16 shootings in Atlanta that left eight people dead, including six Asian American women, protests and vigils took place around the country remembering the victims and calling for an end to a growing wave of anti-Asian racism and violence.

In a major address on confronting the sin of racism and working for racial harmony, Washington Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory, the nation's first African American cardinal, said a "healing of America's soul" is needed.

The work it takes to respond to the issue of racism in the church and the wider community is difficult and slow, but it must be done, said Bishop Shelton J. Fabre of Houma-Thibodaux, Louisiana.

The Jesuit order is pledging to raise $100 million for descendants of enslaved people once owned and sold by their order as a way to make reparations and also help the nation move toward racial healing.

Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda of St. Paul and Minneapolis prayed March 6 for peace and justice in the upcoming trial of a white former city police officer in death of George Floyd, an African American, while in police custody.

n a Feb. 15 segment for the "Today" show's "Changemakers" and "Black Voices" series, Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory of Washington reflected on his faith journey and on his own experiences with racism.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the nation's movement for racial reckoning, the Catholic Health Association of the United States announced an initiative to confront racism in the provision of health care.

As a child, Sheila Stiles Jewell played outside of the public housing where her family lived in Memphis.

Rev. King, who was assassinated in 1968 at age 39, would have turned 92 Jan. 15. Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed on the third Monday of January each year.

"Through Dr. King's witness and the power of his echoing words, he championed the inherent God-given dignity of all persons, particularly those subjected to bigotry and prejudice."

Gloria Purvis, who was told after the Dec. 30 broadcast of the EWTN radio show "Morning Glory" that the show was canceled effective immediately, said she has no regrets using the show to discuss racial matters following the police killing of George Floyd last May.

This year, as tens of thousands of people nationwide protested racial injustices, Catholics similarly took to the streets and also joined in prayer services and discussions speaking out against injustices and seeking a path forward.