When I discovered that Christian Science practitioner and teacher Bettie Thompson is a black woman who witnessed the civil rights movement, immediately I knew I had to interview her for the Journal. When I first called and told her I wanted to speak with her about civil rights, she gave a vivacious, spirited reply: “My friend, I’ve been around a long time. I can tell you all about civil rights.”
A few weeks later, I met with Bettie in her home in the southeast neighborhood of Washington, DC. I quickly learned that she is iconic in the history of African Americans in the Christian Science movement. Her honest observations about that history intrigued, inspired, and, in some cases, amazed me.
Bettie outside her home in Washington, DC
