The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a complicated history with race. In 1852, church leader Brigham Young announced that men of African descent could no longer be ordained to the priesthood, which is an important milestone for male members of the church, and black men and women were banned from participating in other meaningful church practices until 1978.
The church is still unpacking this and other parts of its history, and releasing a series of essays that explain controversial elements of its past. In a 2013 essay titled "Race and the Priesthood," the church explained that the ban was enacted during an era of great racial divide. It also strongly renounced the belief that black people were spiritually inferior to white people. "Church leaders today unequivocally condemn all racism, past and present, in any form," the statement said.
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