Irony of Christian values
Christian values such as caring for others, and "love thy neighbor" are contradicted by the treatment of African Americans in the 20th century. These teachings and values are therefore ironic, as many people at the time weren't truly following them.
Irony of lynchings
James H. Cone draws attention to the irony of lynchings in America, considering strong religious beliefs: “In the “lynching era,” between 1880 to 1940, white Christians lynched nearly five thousand black men and women in a manner with obvious echoes of the Roman crucifixion of Jesus. Yet these “Christians” did not see the irony or contradiction in their actions.” Here, the author is pointing to an irony in American society. While Christians condemned the crucifixion of Christ, many stood by while innocent African Americans were murdered in a similar way.
Irony of American politics
James H. Cone argued that in 20th Century America, there were ironic political values and beliefs. He explains this in the following passage, where he comments on the "glaring omission of the Negro: One irony deserving comment somewhere perhaps is the relationship between our democratic and equalitarian pretensions and our treatment of the Negro." Here, he states that American politics pretended to care about equality and fairness, but in reality the country did not abide by these values.
