ABSTRACT
Within the context of a society dominated by race and class, Black youth fight against many forms of social and political alienation that feed into a general culture of Black youth invisibility. In resistance to invisibility, this paper integrates asset-based community development theory with womanist theology to explore the ways the Black Church can respond to the invisibility of Black youth who are incarcerated or most susceptible to incarceration. My experiences teaching in the prison and youth behavioral facilities, working with Black youth within and outside the church, critical literacy research, and engaging in community-building efforts in local communities inform my proposal for a transformative theological framework the Black Church can employ to affirm Black youth as fully human—with the capacity to be creative, critical, and contributing citizens. I argue that the Black Church can counter invisibility by embracing an asset-based theological framework to reconceive their relationship with Black youth who are incarcerated. This paper examines the ways the church can view youth as change agents with hopes that youth will see themselves as change agents. Ultimately, I encourage the Black Church to reimagine Black youth as artists, positioning them in the role of creators within the church and world.
