Understanding the Role of African American Churches and Clergy in Community Crisis Response

Trader-Leigh, K.
Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies

January 1, 2008

The study underscores the need for culturally informed responders to be a critical component of any public health and social safety net. It also makes clear that African American churches, as well as Hispanic and Asian churches, are tremendous untapped resources that can serve as “field tested”, knowledgeable, and culturally competent community-based partners in emergency response efforts. The disaster response community has an exciting opportunity to embrace, support and build the capacity of local churches as a community asset in meeting the needs of communities of color, especially in economically depressed areas.

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