Over the past two months a burglary spree, targeting eight churches in East St. Louis and Cahokia Heights, IL, as well as the local ESL post office, Walgreens, Maui Fish Market, Skate City roller rink and an attempted burglary of the Officer Funeral Home, has tested the faith and security of those affected.
And while some surveillance footage has captured some of the culprits, no arrests have been made at press time, to the dismay of pastors, business owners and citizens.
Now it’s unfortunate, but par for the course in poor communities, for businesses to be frequent targets of the criminal element.
But who would ravage area churches, especially in a black community once known for literally having churches on every block and whose streets bear the names of many of the now deceased pastors of many of these once hallowed institutions?
It’s a complex question that could be easily dismissed as a function of rampant poverty, exacerbated by drug-addictive behavior, with the churches considered simply as casualties and collateral damage.
However, I’m old enough to remember an East Boogie where even the most misguided miscreants, gang members, unrepentant thugs and “junkies” were never poor enough, corrupt enough or high enough to burglarize the house of God.
But so much has changed, and for the worse. According to a 2024 Gallup poll, published in the New York Times, the black church has Gen-Z issues, causing a 20% plunge in church membership over the past two decades.
Exacerbating factors contributing to this decline, according to research, are young blacks being less connected to traditional religion, black population shifts and the much-publicized and viral scandals involving sexual misconduct, financial exploitation and accountability; particularly among high-profile ministers within the mega-church communities, combining to erode confidence and foster contempt for this once trusted pillar within the African-American community.
That distrust, for the criminal-minded, may be just the impetus they need to see churches as “just another building,” according to Pastor John Horton of Macedonia Baptist Church in East St. Louis, and a treasure trove of items to be pilfered and purloined.
This perception, by some, won’t be resolved overnight, but a more servant-minded leadership among clergy might go a long way in ameliorating the tarnishing of their brand.
In terms of the church thefts, electronics were the most popular items stolen from multiple locations.
As an example, Delbert Marion, the former East St. Louis police chief and, currently, the minister of security for the Greater New Hope Baptist Church, reported that burglars stole a total of six TV’s, including four 55-inch televisions, a safe, laptop and food from their church in multiple burglaries. He is asking the public to call 618-419-3610 with any information regarding these crimes.
I am convinced, in a community as close-knit as the East St. Louis, that someone reading these words knows something about these burglaries. Therein lies the solution.
The days of refusing to “snitch” on predators as some ghetto code of honor, within your community, should be over; particularly when some of your very own see you as their prey. Today it’s churches and businesses. Tomorrow it can and will be your home or other personal property. If you know something, say something.