Faith Out Loud Expands to 15 Southern Cities, Pushing Black Churches Beyond Their Walls
Rev. Traci Blackmon's Faith Out Loud project is now active in 15 Southern cities, working to get Black church leaders engaged in community needs outside their buildings. The initiative is also tied to voter mobilization ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Faith Out Loud, a project led by Rev. Traci Blackmon, is now working in 15 Southern cities to push Black church leaders to engage with community needs beyond their church buildings.
Launched in 2025, the initiative pairs anchor churches with faith-based organizers in each city. The goal is to move congregations from talking about faith to acting on it, particularly around issues pressing Black communities right now.
"We hope to provide the impetus for transformation that goes with the demonstration," Blackmon said. She formerly served as an associate general minister in the United Church of Christ and is based in St. Louis.
Faith Out Loud is partnering with organizations including Live Free, founded by Pastor Mike McBride, and Texas' Black Faith Coalition. In January, Faith Out Loud members suspended a leadership meeting in Atlanta to speak out on the killing of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, with Black and Latino leaders declaring that "solidarity is not selective."
Blackmon said the initiative is significantly tied to the 2026 midterm elections. Congress is considering the SAVE Act, which could affect voter eligibility, and the Supreme Court is weighing a provision of the Voting Rights Act. Both could disproportionately affect Black communities.
"We are definitely gearing up to defend our right to have voice and vote in the United States," Blackmon said. "That is not a partisan decision. That is a people decision, a constitutional decision."
The project draws on the Civil Rights Movement for its model, revisiting the writings of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and theologian Howard Thurman as guides for the current moment.
