Tyler B. Davis, Stephen Sloan, and a Local Panel to Discuss Black Waco’s Religious Resilience in the Face of Racial Injustice

On Monday, March 31, 2025, at 6 p.m. the Dean of University Libraries, Museums, and the Press will welcome Baylor alumnus Dr. Tyler B. Davis to highlight his recent book, "God of the Whirlwind: Horror, Memory, and Story in Black Waco,” as a part of the Baylor Libraries Author Series. At the event, a panel including Davis and three contributors of the book—Rev. Michael Babers, LaRue Dorsey, and Linda Lewis—will be interviewed by Dr. Stephen Sloan, Professor of History and Director of the Institute for Oral History. The session will take place in the Mayborn Museum Theatre and via Zoom Webinar.

“This project was inspired by members of the Black Waco community who I have met over the years whose stories bear witness to the fact that the building of a more just future depends upon remembering the past,” Davis said.

"God of the Whirlwind: Horror, Memory, and Story in Black Waco,” is a collection of oral history interviews from members of the Black Waco community, assembled and edited by Davis. The book relays experiences of the perspectives of how the 1953 tornado was seen as a divine act of justice for the lynching of Jesse Washington in 1916, where the tornado followed roughly the same path taken by the Lynch mob. The book illustrates how the Black community was able to turn disasters of racial injustice into stories of faith and survival.

“While the project is in part about the survival of one specific and powerful story about Jesse Washington and the 1953 tornado, it is also about how Black Wacoans have for generations transmitted resources and visions for a different kind of community life in Central Texas through passing on stories and memories,” Davis said.

When conducting his research into Waco’s history, Davis partnered with Baylor University’s Institute for Oral History, to gather and share the experiences of the Black community in Waco. Davis earned his doctorate in theological studies from Baylor University and currently serves as a research administrator and adjunct professor in the Mexican American Studies Program and Department of Theology at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas.

This event is free and open to the public. A reception with refreshments and a book signing will follow the conversation. Baylor University Press will have copies of "God of the Whirlwind: Horror, Memory, and Story in Black Waco,” for sale at the event.

For more information, visit library.web.baylor.edu/authorseries.