The State of Racial Tension in America is a panel discussion with Christina Edmondson, Justin Giboney, Collin Hansen, Juan Sanchez, and Benjamin Watson that was delivered at the MLK50 Conference in Memphis, TN on April 4, 2018.
Christina Edmondson, PhD, is a public speaker, mental health therapist, anti-racism advocate, and has served most recently as dean for intercultural student development at Calvin College. She also trains congregations and organizations nationally about implicit bias, multicultural accessibility, and leadership development. Christina and her husband, Mika, have two children.
Justin Giboney is an attorney and political strategist in Atlanta, Georgia. He is also the co-founder and president of the AND Campaign.
Collin Hansen serves as vice president for content and editor in chief of The Gospel Coalition, as well as executive director of The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics. He hosts the Gospelbound podcast and has written and contributed to many books, most recently Timothy Keller: His Spiritual and Intellectual Formation and Rediscover Church: Why the Body of Christ Is Essential. He has published with the New York Times and the Washington Post and offered commentary for CNN, Fox News, NPR, BBC, ABC News, and PBS NewsHour. He edited Our Secular Age: Ten Years of Reading and Applying Charles Taylor and The New City Catechism Devotional, among other books. He is an adjunct professor at Beeson Divinity School, where he also co-chairs the advisory board.
Juan Sánchez (MDiv, ThM, PhD, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) has served as the senior pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, Texas, since 2005. Juan also serves as the chairman of the Board of The Gospel Coalition and is co-founder and president of Coalicion por el Evangelio. He is the author of numerous books, including 1 Peter for You, Seven Dangers Facing your Church, and The Leadership Formula: Develop the Next Generation of Leaders in the Church. He has been married to Jeanine since 1990, and they have five adult daughters.
Benjamin Watson is a former NFL tight end, as well as a writer, a speaker, and an activist. He is a college football studio analyst with the SEC Network, and he serves as vice president of strategic relationships with the Human Coalition, one of the largest pro-life and pro-woman organizations in the country. Along with his wife, Kirsten, he is the founder of The Watson 7 Foundation, a nonprofit focused on strengthening families. They live in Georgia with their seven children. You can find him on Twitter and Facebook.