This book for Gen Z helps young Christians talk about race

Ben Lindsay’s We Need to Talk… About Race: Christian Faith and Racial Justice – A Young Person’s Guide (SPCK Publishing) delivers fully on the promise of its title, and beyond.

Building on his 2019 book We Need To Talk About Race: Understanding the Black Experience in White Majority Churches (SPCK Publishing) which explored the intersection of Christianity and racial justice for a general audience, this edition reimagines that message for a younger generation. It is a pastoral hand extended to the next wave of readers, balancing hard truths with the spiritual nourishment and fortitude needed to confront a highly racialised world.

This book is not just for young people of colour. Lindsay’s approach is refreshingly inclusive, inviting all readers to see the realities of institutional, structural, interpersonal and internalised racism not as abstract concepts, but as forces at work in schools, churches, youth clubs and everyday encounters.

His framework, “The Four Dimensions of Racism”, is particularly helpful in breaking down how prejudice operates: from individual acts of bias to structural systems that perpetuate inequality. The clarity with which Lindsay defines these terms makes the book accessible to newcomers while still offering depth for seasoned readers.

The heart of the book is in its stories. Lindsay offers personal accounts alongside historical, theological and scientific insight. Through interviews with young Black Christians — MOBO-winning rapper and author Guvna B, drummer and bandleader Femi Koleoso of Ezra Collective (Brit Award Group of the Year 2025), and footballer Eberechi Eze, recently signed to Arsenal; these stories make the theory tangible. Guvna B’s recollection of being harassed by three white men, one of whom threw coffee in his face and punched him, is shocking yet sobering. Similarly, Yasmin Elizabeth-Mfon’s story of being racially abused at a busy train station while with her young son underscores the vulnerability many Black people feel in public spaces and the caution they must take to preserve their safety.

The result is both intimate and practical. Each chapter ends with thoughtful cues for reflection, prayer prompts, and even guidance on where to find emotional support if the weight of the subject matter proves heavy. This pastoral care is no accident. Lindsay is deeply aware of the emotional and psychological toll these conversations can take, especially on those who have personally experienced racism. His inclusion of therapeutic elements in his reflections makes the book not only informative but restorative.

Some sections are unflinching in their critique. In Chapter 5, Lindsay tackles the Church’s role in the transatlantic slave trade with a frankness rarely seen in Christian literature for young audiences. He questions why Church histories so often highlight abolitionist figures without equal attention to how Christianity was used to justify slavery. By asking provocative questions, such as whether white people today should bear responsibility for past atrocities, Lindsay forces readers to grapple with the ongoing impact of historical wrongs.

His own words on the matter carry significant weight: “Our present culture is extremely individualistic; Christian culture shouldn’t be. There is a collective responsibility for the past wrongs of the community, especially if we are still benefiting from or being impacted by those wrongs.” It is a call to reject the temptation to distance ourselves from history and instead to respond in ways that repair and restore.

Lindsay also examines the enduring dehumanisation of Black bodies, drawing a line from the pseudo-science of the slave era to contemporary commentary. He notes the excessive emphasis on Black athletes’ physicality, from footballers to Serena Williams, and connects this seamlessly with adultification bias, where Black children are perceived and treated as older than they are, as in the disturbing case of Child Q. Such examples make it clear that racism is not merely a historical phenomenon but an ongoing and evolving injustice.

In Chapter 6, “Towards Repair”, Lindsay explores the idea of reparatory justice through both biblical and contemporary lenses. He points to the story of Zacchaeus, who repaid those he had defrauded fourfold, as a model for restitution. At the same time, he acknowledges the complexity introduced by passages like Jeremiah 31:29–30, which emphasise individual accountability for sin. Rather than leaving readers in a place of guilt or paralysis, Lindsay encourages practical action that seeks to repair harm while moving forward. The Church of England’s £100 million “reparation” fund, aimed at addressing the legacies of slavery, is offered as one example of how institutions might begin this work.

Perhaps the most powerful aspect of We Need to Talk… About Race is its refusal to shy away from tension.

Lindsay invites young readers into a faith that can face the failings of the Church without discarding its potential for transformation.

This requires honesty about the past, courage in the present, and a commitment to building a future where everyone can truly belong.

In a cultural climate where conversations about race can quickly become defensive or polarised, this book offers a steady, clear-eyed path forward. Grounded in faith, it calls the next generation not only to understand the realities of racism but to become agents of change.

We Need to Talk… About Race is an invaluable resource for youth groups, schools, and individual study. It equips young believers to confront racism with both courage and compassion, and to imagine a Church and a world where belonging is not conditional but a given.

We Need to Talk… About Race: Christian Faith and Racial Justice – A Young Person’s Guide (SPCK Publishing) is out now