August 26, 2025 • 29 mins
When Parisienne Edmée Chavannes watched Spike Lee's "Malcolm X" as a teenager, something ignited inside her that would define her worldview for years. Suddenly, white people became "devils" in her eyes.
However, after moving to the land of Malcolm X, America, Edmée was shocked to encounter Christians who welcomed her with genuine kindness.
See the transformation that followed and witness her response to other people of color she calls out on practicing racism.
Today, Edmée channels her passion into ministry and pro-life activism, recognizing that both racism and abortion deny the full humanity of persons. Now with Jesus' eyes, she describes how we're all made in God's image.
Helpful links:
Edmee's Ministry, At the Well Ministries
Edmee’s ministry partner, Bevelyn Beatty on CBN
Bevelyn Beatty pardoned by Trump
Is Christianity a White Man’s Religion?
Let us know what you thought of the show!
Follow One80 on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.
Never miss a One80. Join our email list.
Follow us on Instagram.
Share One80, here's how!
OneWay Ministries
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Intro (00:02):
Welcome to 180, transforming testimonies from
next door to across the globe.
Be amazed at how God works tobring people to himself.
Share today's 180 with a friend.
It might be the best news theyhear today.
Edmee Chavannes (00:16):
How dare you insult my God?
My God is playful, my God iscolorful, my God is not boring.
Flavorful, my God is colorful,my God is not boring.
And I do recall I think it wasthe moment where whatever
lingering ties I had with thatlife of racism, it might have
been the day that it got shutdown.
Margaret Ereneta (00:41):
The story of Edme Chavannes' life changed so
abruptly when she said yes toJesus, literally going from
seeing white people as devils toseeing God as a lover of all
peoples of all colors.
I'm Margaret Araneta, your hostfor Season 4.
Welcome to Edmé's 180.
Edmee Chavannes (01:06):
So what was it like growing up?
I grew up in Paris, france, inEurope.
I was born and raised there.
Initially, my parents my fatheractually migrated to France
from Haiti in the late 70s andmy mom followed him and they got
married in there.
I'm the first child and growingup actually, initially, my mom
(01:30):
would take us to church as ayoung kid.
She would take us to church.
Her and my dad divorced andafter that she strayed away from
the Lord.
So as a young teenager, I grewup secular.
I thank God, though, for thoseseeds that were planted in me
early on.
I do believe that they played apart in my coming to the Lord.
(01:53):
But I have to say that growingup in France is not like America
, especially if you live in theSouth.
In America, culturally speaking, people keep things very
private.
I'd, culturally speaking,people keep things very private.
I'd say most people keep thingsvery private.
(02:15):
So, growing up as a youngteenager, secularism was the
religion.
Really, that's what you wereshown in school.
Watching TV is what you see.
That's what was accepted,celebrated If you happen to be
maybe a Catholic or a Jewishperson, or things were kept very
private, or even a Muslim whenI was growing up in the late 80s
and early 90s, things were keptpretty private, and so in the
(02:40):
midst of that I stumbled acrossa movie directed by Spike Lee
Malcolm X.
Denzel Washington actuallyplays the main character there,
and for me it was the biggestintroduction to, I would say, a
portion of the history inAmerica.
Again, growing up in France, Iwas exposed to American culture,
(03:02):
but I did not know the extentto which color played a part in
that culture, and besides movieslike Roots that I had seen as
well, for some reason Malcolm Xgot me.
It made me upset.
I just took it on.
(03:23):
I don't know what got into me.
Sometimes I think back.
I'm like I don't know if it wasa demon, but it was bad.
So how did it look like?
Well, first off, my mom actuallyhad friends that were white,
and actually she had goodfriends that loved us as kids
and they would visit my mom, andI do recall a specific lady,
(03:47):
corrine.
Her name was Corrine and sheused to visit maybe once a month
and would always have fun withher.
And she showed up as usual andwe started to talk and I
couldn't wait to find an inroadto let her know that she was the
devil, that she was evil, and Idid.
I looked at her at some pointand I said white people are the
(04:12):
devil.
She never came back.
I alienated her.
It came out of nowhere as faras she was concerned, but I had
it in me to tell her that in herface, to her face.
And so what happened?
As far as I was concerned,everything that had to do with
white people was inferior.
It was boring, detestable,detestable, seriously detestable
(04:39):
.
And as far as Black people wereconcerned, we were superior.
We were victimized and we had aright to stand and fight.
And as far as Black people wereconcerned, we were superior.
We were victimized and we had aright to stand and fight.
I got out of that movie, butthat was the start.
That was the trigger that gotme to read.
I went and read the wholebiography, my first English book
(05:03):
, english speaking book.
I think I was maybe 13.
It's a huge, thick book, alexAiley's Malcolm X biography.
That inspired the movie.
I read the whole thing inEnglish.
I read, I studied to everythingthat were anything and
everything that was black, Iwould consume, I would purchase,
(05:31):
I would acknowledge, I wouldthink better than anything else.
Um, yeah, it really was.
It was the soundtrack of the90s.
For me, my teenage years, itwas.
It was the soundtrack.
So someone like a celine deonthat I mean exploded in the 90s,
uh, I could not bring myself tosay you know what?
She's very talented.
I couldn't do that because shewas white.
No way With me.
Yes, not Celine, never.
(05:53):
It was terrible.
I had posters of Malcolm and DrKing in my bedroom.
Man, if BLM was around in thosedays, I would have been the
first militant Might have foundit.
It was terrible.
It was terrible, and it showsthe power of culture Christ is
(06:18):
supposed to be in the midst ofthat.
You remove Christ, man, youlose culture, you lose the
stream.
So one of the things, though,that I believe got me to embrace
this whole struggle, this wholeBlack plight, was actually my
love for the US.
I think that somehow, myinterest in the US is what the
(06:42):
downstream of that was myattachment to this Black Plague,
and I knew somewhere, one day Iwill live there, and so, at the
time, I was not a Christian atall.
I actually took another sixyears for me to finally migrate,
(07:02):
and actually it was an advicefrom my mother, was in the heels
of my being depressed.
I had lost my best friend atthe time and I was in the
process of trying to come to theU?
S, but it was a very difficultthing to do, especially if you
want to do it legally.
So you got to find a way to doit, and so one of the things I
had heard was to be hired wasone way, and going to school was
(07:28):
another.
And so a set of miraclesactually transpired for me to
even know that I would live inthe US, and at the time I
remember thanking God andknowing there must be a God,
because I kept hearing no, no,no, no, no.
(07:48):
And all of a sudden thingsturned around, because I had
actually had plans to go back toFrance and wanting to give up
because, as I was looking for ajob, I was looking for
opportunities in the US, theywere not coming to fruition, and
so I started to see how okay,the door got open.
And I know I didn't do that,and so I would just I mean
(08:11):
literally look up and say God,thank you.
But again, I'm not a Christian.
I had a degree in internationaltrade, and so a trade company
import, export company actuallyhired me.
But the way that it happened, Iknew God did that, this was
yeah, I knew it was a miracle,and so that started to show me,
(08:38):
or at least confirm, what I'vealways thought of the US this is
the land of opportunity.
Margaret Ereneta (08:54):
So now we're about to embark on Edmay's
turning point.
She's just coming to the US andfinds herself surrounded by
Christians, and see how herstory starts to unfold.
Edmee Chavannes (09:05):
And so, as I now was venturing into okay, how
am I going to stay in thiscountry?
Where am I going to live?
I don't have that much money.
Again, the Lord started to opendoors and in doing that, for
some reason, the people that Iwould mingle with would be
Christians.
For some reason, they're theones that are extending a hand,
(09:28):
they're the ones that are givingyou information, they're the
ones that are welcoming you,they're the ones Christians.
Now, they're living their lives, they're busy working, they're
doing what they're doing.
They're going to Bible studies,which was a new thing for me.
Wow, people really do take thetime to go to a midweek Bible
study.
(09:48):
This, wow, these people areserious Christians.
That's what I thought to myself, not knowing that this is, yeah
, a lot of people do that in theUS, you know.
But I did see how God wasputting me in the midst of
Christians and at that point inmy life I did not have a problem
with Christian.
I always respected Jesus.
I always knew Jesus was a goodone.
(10:10):
I never had a problem with Godin the sense that I don't
believe there is a God.
No, even as a kid, when theywould tell me in school you know
you came out of a monkey.
No, I did not come from amonkey.
No, thank you very much.
I always knew to reject thatnonsense, even if I was not a
Christian.
To me it didn't, no, I don'tknow where I came from, but I
(10:31):
did not come from a monkey.
I know I was made, I wascreated.
I knew that Just being in anenvironment where you had
Christians, god-fearing people,living their day-to-day life
started to do something to me.
I wanted to be there.
I actually wanted to improve onsome things in my life, you
(10:53):
know.
At the same time, though, I wasstill the secular teenager that
was raised in France, and now,actually, at that time, I was 21
, 22, 21.
And I had never really dated aguy, and I started to date and
it didn't work, you know, and atthe time I did not understand
(11:14):
that it was God protecting mefrom myself.
I thought that, well, what'sthe point?
You live your life, and, again,at the time I was not a
Christian, so I did notunderstand fully the value of
staying to yourself, in thesense of not being in a
relationship with someone ifyou're not married, and so when
(11:36):
I was rejected, or when I sawthat things didn't work out with
a specific guy, it put me in aposition where I was very
depressed and I started toquestion a lot of things.
And when you don't know who youare and you get your cues from
the world and society and whatTV has to say, then you get
depressed really fast, and sothat's what happened to me, and
(12:00):
that's where I think God had myear, and that's where things
started to change in terms of mygetting saved.
It took for me to realize thatjust having a decent lifestyle,
which I thought I had, you know,I didn't do drugs, I didn't do
(12:20):
alcohol, I drink alcohol, Ididn't do the things I was very
responsible as a teenager, butthat did not protect me from
insecurity, that did not protectme from the things that are
necessary to have a good esteemof self.
(12:43):
It did not protect me at all.
So at some point, it got to aplace where, yeah, I was
depressed and I didn't know it.
I was depressed and I didn'tknow it.
I was depressed and I didn'tknow it.
And so, at the time, though,thank God, because he had placed
(13:05):
me in this environment withpeople that were full of the joy
of the Lord, it kept me goingfor a while, and actually, one
day, one particular person,young guy, was very different
from a lot of people, verydifferent.
He walked with assurance, hehad a lot of peace about him.
(13:27):
Just if you're around him.
You would know, somehoweverything's going to be okay.
He had that with him to wherehe goes places and he talks to
people Everybody that I sawaround him.
For some reason, they were okay.
And I asked him at some pointwhat is it with you?
Because, again, I was dealingwith Christians.
(13:48):
So something, though, wasspecific with that one young man
.
So something, though, wasspecific with that one young man
, and he said I'm a Christian,and initially I didn't believe
him.
I did not believe him because,again, I had encountered
Christians.
I had met Christians that werenice people.
However, something wasdifferent with that young man
(14:10):
and I said but what kind ofChristian?
And he said I just follow Jesus.
And I was so intrigued that Iasked him I don't know again,
what is it with you?
Because I've met Christiansbefore, but I want what you have
.
And so he proceeded to inviteme to church, and I recall the
(14:32):
first time I went, I was veryedified, and I think, maybe on
the third or fourth time Icannot remember what was
preached, but I went down to getsaved.
I came down the stairs and Isaid I want this.
I don't know what it is that Iwant, but what I saw in this man
.
I want it.
And maybe my hesitation inasking him what is it?
(14:53):
But I heard Christians.
It's because I was trying toavoid false religion.
I was trying to avoid what I'vealways known of Christians or
Muslims or whoever.
I did not want to belong to aclub.
I did not want to belong to acommunity and do things or
wearing this brand or that brand.
I really saw something real andauthentic and I wanted that.
(15:19):
And I recall when I left thealtar I started to speak
different.
My words were positive.
I was beaming that depressionthat I didn't know I had left.
I didn't know I had that.
I figured, wait a minute, I'mhappy now.
That meant I was not happybefore.
Wait, I had a depression Like Ididn't even know per se.
(15:40):
I just thought this is how lifewas until God really touched me
and I just remember it's.
It felt like I was becoming alittle girl all over again.
It felt like I was becoming alittle girl all over again, and
now a whole world of opportunitywas set before me.
And now I had the opportunityto have a father, heavenly
(16:04):
father, and I had theopportunity to have a big
brother, jesus.
And that's my best friendbecause, being here in this
country living friends, I hadleft a lot of friends and family
and I thank God that cominghere I was able to get to know
people and whatnot.
But it was a new land.
That was a year after I moved,but, yeah, I remember being
(16:25):
different, that the joy of theLord.
I really believe that's what Iencountered that day.
What I encountered that day,and it was glorious.
It was glorious.
I knew I was in, I knew now Iwant a Bible.
And I recall when I was given aBible for the first time, I
remember pausing and saying Lord, I want to get this, I don't
(16:46):
want to waste your time, I don'twant to waste my time, I want
to understand what this says.
And I started to go to a Biblestudy and things started to
happen.
Margaret Ereneta (17:00):
Hey friends, make sure to share 180 with your
people.
It might be the best news theyhear today.
Now back to the show.
Edmee Chavannes (17:10):
Things started to happen.
This whole realm of thesupernatural was amazing to me,
and it's not necessarily insigns and wonders and miracles
per se, it's just the fact thatthis is even a possibility.
I felt like it was me going to.
When a kid hears they're goingto Disney most kids they're
(17:34):
happy about it.
This is like a whole new worldoutside of the world that
they're in For some reasongetting into Christ.
It felt like that.
It felt like that becausethings did not have to be
mundane anymore and then theyhave to be secular anymore.
Do you mean there's meaning tomy life?
Do you mean to tell me I'm notjust erring and just being
(17:54):
someone that just exists for thesake of existing?
And then you have your family,the meaning, significance.
Wait, we're going somewhere.
You mean I came from somewhere,but it didn't feel the same as
things being tough in the old,things being tough in this whole
new world.
It's going to be okay, I'marmed.
(18:16):
My father is with me In theother world.
He was still there trying toappeal to me and get to me, but
I did not know I was lost.
It's better when you're notlost, and so that's what
happened that day.
It was actually early September,late August, early September of
(18:38):
2003.
And from there, oh man, oh man,I would hear things like yeah,
the Lord told me.
It's like what do you mean?
The Lord told you.
Do you mean God speaks?
I had no idea God speaks.
I know we can pray to God, butI don't know what you mean.
God do you speak?
(18:58):
If that's true, I want to hear,I want to hear what you're
saying.
And then, lo and behold,starting to hear certain things,
and this leads to this and thisleads to this move of God in my
life and certain things that Ialso noticed on the heels of
being saved.
For some reason, I started towant certain things, such as
(19:20):
wanting to forgive my father.
It came to me you need toforgive your father.
Okay, call my father and tellhim listen, I forgive you.
He did not understand exactlywhat this was about, but, fine,
I needed to do it.
Margaret Ereneta (19:37):
See what happens right after Ed May says
yes to Jesus.
Friends God's at work even on aNew York City subway so cool.
Edmee Chavannes (19:48):
I remember one time commuting and there were
some Hebrew Israelites.
It's a group of people, most ofthem are Black, and they push
the narrative that the trueIsraelites are different Black
people and at the time I stillremember being pro-Black to a
(20:10):
certain degree.
But the way that they weretalking I was offended.
How dare you limit God to acolor?
How dare you put it out therethat God only prizes and values
a specific color?
And out of nowhere.
I remember arguing with theseguys and you should, I don't
know if you publicly, on the bus, publicly and I'm baby
(20:41):
christian.
And how dare you?
My god isn't any.
They're reading some fakescripture.
And that's when I realized theygot fake bible and fake
everything.
I didn't know.
How dare you insult my god?
My god is flavorful, my God iscolorful, my God is not boring.
But I was never taught.
I don't know where, I don'tknow.
I started to notice that and Ido recall I think it was the
(21:03):
moment where, whatever lingeringties I had with that life of
racism, it might have been theday that it got shut down.
Because now I'm offended andnow I'm not even talking.
Now I'm realizing how offensiveit is to limit God to an
ethnicity or a color.
It's offensive, god, it'soffensive.
(21:28):
And I remember beingrighteously angered that day.
And out of that, another thingI found out I'm not scared.
I'm not scared of people orwhat they think about me in
society the way that I used to,because now I'm publicly sitting
and standing and telling themto their faces and it's not a
(21:49):
quiet conversation on that bus.
And so I figured, oh no, we'renot doing that.
And now I believe a love is,the love of God, shed abroad on
our heart.
I didn't know the scriptures, Ididn't know what it was, but I
knew you are in Christ, you aremy brother, you are my sister.
This color, this brown, blackcolor, my color, is not
(22:13):
something that I'm proud of.
It's not something that I'mashamed of.
I'm thankful for it.
I believe it's nice, it'spretty, but that's about it.
And I implore anyone andeveryone to think the same way
of how God made them to be.
Vanilla is no better thanchocolate and chocolate is no
better than vanilla.
(22:34):
And God set me free from all ofthat.
He really did.
And now it put me in a positionwhere I realized that it is the
people of God that are my family.
It's not blood, it's not color,it's not even a nation per se.
Now, do I love my earthlyfamily?
(22:54):
Of course?
Do I love my fellow Americans?
Of course, but my fathers, mybrothers and sisters are those
who do the will of God.
This is my family, and so thatis something that I've
endeavored to share, because youhave a lot of people who have
fallen into what I fell into asa teenager, and that is this
(23:17):
whole colorism, racism, a lot ofpeople, which is idolatry,
really, it's idolatry, it'sidolatry.
I always thought you read thescripture and you think of
idolatry.
Okay, I'm, I don't know,crafting a fatted calf or no.
Idolatry is idolizing flesh,idolizing anything before God,
(23:44):
and that a lot of black peoplehave idolized their color.
If someone insults God, jesus,they might be offended, but if
someone insults their color orthey think that someone don't
like their color, they willraise hell, and that is not
(24:07):
right.
And so I was one of them, and Ithank God that God set me free
from that.
This, I guess, newfound pridethat I have in the Lord, it
translated into my wanting to goout there and bring about His
name in however ways.
He would have me do it, andbring about his name in however
(24:29):
ways he would have me do it.
Margaret Ereneta (24:31):
You'll find out how true that statement is.
Edmay's after deliverance is soamazing.
She goes from growing up hatingwhite people to finding out
about a pro-life ministrybecause of President Trump, who
actually ends up pardoningEdmay's ministry partner, who
went to prison for theirinvolvement in the pro-life
(24:53):
movement, Just being a vessel ofGod wherever he puts them.
It's so inspiring.
Edmee Chavannes (25:01):
So initially I said to myself maybe I should
share or give some tracks, andit started with that.
And then it started with that,and then it continued with
wanting to just engage withpeople and talk to people on the
streets as I would go aboutdoing what I was doing.
And in the midst of that I metmy best friend today, beverly,
(25:24):
and we started a ministry 10years ago that had to do with
the same thing, which is goingabout and around and allowing
people or facilitating the atthe well experience that the
woman in John, chapter five, had, which is to meet Jesus and
(25:44):
from there to encounter the Lord, and wanting to go out there
and tell other people what theLord had done.
And so we wanted to do that asa ministry.
And it got to a place where Ipersonally at the time I would
say about six years ago I wasworking for a friend who had a
couple of organizations and oneactually was a feminist
(26:07):
organization had a couple oforganizations and one actually
was a feminist organization andshe wanted me to do a piece, but
that piece was promotingabortion rights and I was not
okay with that, and so I told myfriend, who happened to be a
Christian.
Listen, I can't do that.
You might have to find someoneelse to do that piece Long of a
(26:30):
story short.
It was the first time that ithit me.
Oh my God, I'm taking a standon this pro-life subject.
I mean, I've always beenpro-life, even when I was not a
Christian.
I knew getting an abortion ismurder.
No one can explain that away.
I've always known that, butI've never really taken any
(26:51):
stance.
And so that, happening inJanuary 2017, within that same
week that I took that stand Iheard that there was a pro-life
march in DC, and out of allpeople that I heard it from, it
was President Trump, who hadjust become president and was
getting inaugurated that sameweek DC.
And out of all people that Iheard it from, it was President
Trump, who had just becomepresident and was getting
inaugurated that same week.
(27:11):
And so people asked him youknow, what do you think of all
the women that are going to comeand protest against you?
And I remember President Trumpsaying well, we have a right in
this country to do that, but areyou going to cover the March
for Life?
And it was a March for Life.
And that's when I found outthat, for years, pro-lifers were
gathering in DC to protest Roev Wade and protest abortion in
(27:36):
the nation.
So I went that year.
That same week I said I need tofind out what this is about, and
once I got there, I realizedthere was a whole world of
people that made it their lifegoal and mission to fight for
the unborn, to fight for life,to fight for the soul of this
nation.
In that context, of course, thegospel is what saves okay, not
(27:59):
the pro-life movement.
Aware of that.
However, pro-life movement isvery key To me.
It is as crucial and even morecrucial than slavery was an
issue in this country, becauseboth whether it's slavery or
abortion both say the person isnot a human being.
(28:23):
Abortion says that person inyou is not a human being.
Slavery says that person is nota human being.
So to me, this was somethingthat we needed to.
I needed to be involved in, andso, as we were planning to
continue to minister, as aorganization, we started to get
involved in protesting abortion.
(28:46):
We did it initially here andthere in different states, but
it got really serious when, inNew York, the governor at the
time, governor Cuomo, went alongand said okay, we're going to
allow for abortion to beperformed up until birth, and
this was in 2019, late 2018,turning into 2019, 2019, late
(29:08):
2018, turning into 2019, we'reall we need to do something
about this, and so we gotheavily involved in the pro-life
movement.
Margaret Ereneta (29:18):
Thanks for listening today.
Edmay is now a Christianactivist with At the Well
Ministries.
You can find out about them inour show notes.
God wrote your story, so it'salready awesome.
Why not share it?
Intro (29:35):
We can show you how at 180podcastcom or check out our
show notes.
No-transcript.
Welcome to 180, transforming testimonies from
next door to across the globe.
Be amazed at how God works tobring people to himself.
Share today's 180 with a friend.
It might be the best news theyhear today.
Edmee Chavannes (00:16):
How dare you insult my God?
My God is playful, my God iscolorful, my God is not boring.
Flavorful, my God is colorful,my God is not boring.
And I do recall I think it wasthe moment where whatever
lingering ties I had with thatlife of racism, it might have
been the day that it got shutdown.
Margaret Ereneta (00:41):
The story of Edme Chavannes' life changed so
abruptly when she said yes toJesus, literally going from
seeing white people as devils toseeing God as a lover of all
peoples of all colors.
I'm Margaret Araneta, your hostfor Season 4.
Welcome to Edmé's 180.
Edmee Chavannes (01:06):
So what was it like growing up?
I grew up in Paris, france, inEurope.
I was born and raised there.
Initially, my parents my fatheractually migrated to France
from Haiti in the late 70s andmy mom followed him and they got
married in there.
I'm the first child and growingup actually, initially, my mom
(01:30):
would take us to church as ayoung kid.
She would take us to church.
Her and my dad divorced andafter that she strayed away from
the Lord.
So as a young teenager, I grewup secular.
I thank God, though, for thoseseeds that were planted in me
early on.
I do believe that they played apart in my coming to the Lord.
(01:53):
But I have to say that growingup in France is not like America
, especially if you live in theSouth.
In America, culturally speaking, people keep things very
private.
I'd, culturally speaking,people keep things very private.
I'd say most people keep thingsvery private.
(02:15):
So, growing up as a youngteenager, secularism was the
religion.
Really, that's what you wereshown in school.
Watching TV is what you see.
That's what was accepted,celebrated If you happen to be
maybe a Catholic or a Jewishperson, or things were kept very
private, or even a Muslim whenI was growing up in the late 80s
and early 90s, things were keptpretty private, and so in the
(02:40):
midst of that I stumbled acrossa movie directed by Spike Lee
Malcolm X.
Denzel Washington actuallyplays the main character there,
and for me it was the biggestintroduction to, I would say, a
portion of the history inAmerica.
Again, growing up in France, Iwas exposed to American culture,
(03:02):
but I did not know the extentto which color played a part in
that culture, and besides movieslike Roots that I had seen as
well, for some reason Malcolm Xgot me.
It made me upset.
I just took it on.
(03:23):
I don't know what got into me.
Sometimes I think back.
I'm like I don't know if it wasa demon, but it was bad.
So how did it look like?
Well, first off, my mom actuallyhad friends that were white,
and actually she had goodfriends that loved us as kids
and they would visit my mom, andI do recall a specific lady,
(03:47):
corrine.
Her name was Corrine and sheused to visit maybe once a month
and would always have fun withher.
And she showed up as usual andwe started to talk and I
couldn't wait to find an inroadto let her know that she was the
devil, that she was evil, and Idid.
I looked at her at some pointand I said white people are the
(04:12):
devil.
She never came back.
I alienated her.
It came out of nowhere as faras she was concerned, but I had
it in me to tell her that in herface, to her face.
And so what happened?
As far as I was concerned,everything that had to do with
white people was inferior.
It was boring, detestable,detestable, seriously detestable
(04:39):
.
And as far as Black people wereconcerned, we were superior.
We were victimized and we had aright to stand and fight.
And as far as Black people wereconcerned, we were superior.
We were victimized and we had aright to stand and fight.
I got out of that movie, butthat was the start.
That was the trigger that gotme to read.
I went and read the wholebiography, my first English book
(05:03):
, english speaking book.
I think I was maybe 13.
It's a huge, thick book, alexAiley's Malcolm X biography.
That inspired the movie.
I read the whole thing inEnglish.
I read, I studied to everythingthat were anything and
everything that was black, Iwould consume, I would purchase,
(05:31):
I would acknowledge, I wouldthink better than anything else.
Um, yeah, it really was.
It was the soundtrack of the90s.
For me, my teenage years, itwas.
It was the soundtrack.
So someone like a celine deonthat I mean exploded in the 90s,
uh, I could not bring myself tosay you know what?
She's very talented.
I couldn't do that because shewas white.
No way With me.
Yes, not Celine, never.
(05:53):
It was terrible.
I had posters of Malcolm and DrKing in my bedroom.
Man, if BLM was around in thosedays, I would have been the
first militant Might have foundit.
It was terrible.
It was terrible, and it showsthe power of culture Christ is
(06:18):
supposed to be in the midst ofthat.
You remove Christ, man, youlose culture, you lose the
stream.
So one of the things, though,that I believe got me to embrace
this whole struggle, this wholeBlack plight, was actually my
love for the US.
I think that somehow, myinterest in the US is what the
(06:42):
downstream of that was myattachment to this Black Plague,
and I knew somewhere, one day Iwill live there, and so, at the
time, I was not a Christian atall.
I actually took another sixyears for me to finally migrate,
(07:02):
and actually it was an advicefrom my mother, was in the heels
of my being depressed.
I had lost my best friend atthe time and I was in the
process of trying to come to theU?
S, but it was a very difficultthing to do, especially if you
want to do it legally.
So you got to find a way to doit, and so one of the things I
had heard was to be hired wasone way, and going to school was
(07:28):
another.
And so a set of miraclesactually transpired for me to
even know that I would live inthe US, and at the time I
remember thanking God andknowing there must be a God,
because I kept hearing no, no,no, no, no.
(07:48):
And all of a sudden thingsturned around, because I had
actually had plans to go back toFrance and wanting to give up
because, as I was looking for ajob, I was looking for
opportunities in the US, theywere not coming to fruition, and
so I started to see how okay,the door got open.
And I know I didn't do that,and so I would just I mean
(08:11):
literally look up and say God,thank you.
But again, I'm not a Christian.
I had a degree in internationaltrade, and so a trade company
import, export company actuallyhired me.
But the way that it happened, Iknew God did that, this was
yeah, I knew it was a miracle,and so that started to show me,
(08:38):
or at least confirm, what I'vealways thought of the US this is
the land of opportunity.
Margaret Ereneta (08:54):
So now we're about to embark on Edmay's
turning point.
She's just coming to the US andfinds herself surrounded by
Christians, and see how herstory starts to unfold.
Edmee Chavannes (09:05):
And so, as I now was venturing into okay, how
am I going to stay in thiscountry?
Where am I going to live?
I don't have that much money.
Again, the Lord started to opendoors and in doing that, for
some reason, the people that Iwould mingle with would be
Christians.
For some reason, they're theones that are extending a hand,
(09:28):
they're the ones that are givingyou information, they're the
ones that are welcoming you,they're the ones Christians.
Now, they're living their lives, they're busy working, they're
doing what they're doing.
They're going to Bible studies,which was a new thing for me.
Wow, people really do take thetime to go to a midweek Bible
study.
(09:48):
This, wow, these people areserious Christians.
That's what I thought to myself, not knowing that this is, yeah
, a lot of people do that in theUS, you know.
But I did see how God wasputting me in the midst of
Christians and at that point inmy life I did not have a problem
with Christian.
I always respected Jesus.
I always knew Jesus was a goodone.
(10:10):
I never had a problem with Godin the sense that I don't
believe there is a God.
No, even as a kid, when theywould tell me in school you know
you came out of a monkey.
No, I did not come from amonkey.
No, thank you very much.
I always knew to reject thatnonsense, even if I was not a
Christian.
To me it didn't, no, I don'tknow where I came from, but I
(10:31):
did not come from a monkey.
I know I was made, I wascreated.
I knew that Just being in anenvironment where you had
Christians, god-fearing people,living their day-to-day life
started to do something to me.
I wanted to be there.
I actually wanted to improve onsome things in my life, you
(10:53):
know.
At the same time, though, I wasstill the secular teenager that
was raised in France, and now,actually, at that time, I was 21
, 22, 21.
And I had never really dated aguy, and I started to date and
it didn't work, you know, and atthe time I did not understand
(11:14):
that it was God protecting mefrom myself.
I thought that, well, what'sthe point?
You live your life, and, again,at the time I was not a
Christian, so I did notunderstand fully the value of
staying to yourself, in thesense of not being in a
relationship with someone ifyou're not married, and so when
(11:36):
I was rejected, or when I sawthat things didn't work out with
a specific guy, it put me in aposition where I was very
depressed and I started toquestion a lot of things.
And when you don't know who youare and you get your cues from
the world and society and whatTV has to say, then you get
depressed really fast, and sothat's what happened to me, and
(12:00):
that's where I think God had myear, and that's where things
started to change in terms of mygetting saved.
It took for me to realize thatjust having a decent lifestyle,
which I thought I had, you know,I didn't do drugs, I didn't do
(12:20):
alcohol, I drink alcohol, Ididn't do the things I was very
responsible as a teenager, butthat did not protect me from
insecurity, that did not protectme from the things that are
necessary to have a good esteemof self.
(12:43):
It did not protect me at all.
So at some point, it got to aplace where, yeah, I was
depressed and I didn't know it.
I was depressed and I didn'tknow it.
I was depressed and I didn'tknow it.
And so, at the time, though,thank God, because he had placed
(13:05):
me in this environment withpeople that were full of the joy
of the Lord, it kept me goingfor a while, and actually, one
day, one particular person,young guy, was very different
from a lot of people, verydifferent.
He walked with assurance, hehad a lot of peace about him.
(13:27):
Just if you're around him.
You would know, somehoweverything's going to be okay.
He had that with him to wherehe goes places and he talks to
people Everybody that I sawaround him.
For some reason, they were okay.
And I asked him at some pointwhat is it with you?
Because, again, I was dealingwith Christians.
(13:48):
So something, though, wasspecific with that one young man
.
So something, though, wasspecific with that one young man
, and he said I'm a Christian,and initially I didn't believe
him.
I did not believe him because,again, I had encountered
Christians.
I had met Christians that werenice people.
However, something wasdifferent with that young man
(14:10):
and I said but what kind ofChristian?
And he said I just follow Jesus.
And I was so intrigued that Iasked him I don't know again,
what is it with you?
Because I've met Christiansbefore, but I want what you have
.
And so he proceeded to inviteme to church, and I recall the
(14:32):
first time I went, I was veryedified, and I think, maybe on
the third or fourth time Icannot remember what was
preached, but I went down to getsaved.
I came down the stairs and Isaid I want this.
I don't know what it is that Iwant, but what I saw in this man
.
I want it.
And maybe my hesitation inasking him what is it?
(14:53):
But I heard Christians.
It's because I was trying toavoid false religion.
I was trying to avoid what I'vealways known of Christians or
Muslims or whoever.
I did not want to belong to aclub.
I did not want to belong to acommunity and do things or
wearing this brand or that brand.
I really saw something real andauthentic and I wanted that.
(15:19):
And I recall when I left thealtar I started to speak
different.
My words were positive.
I was beaming that depressionthat I didn't know I had left.
I didn't know I had that.
I figured, wait a minute, I'mhappy now.
That meant I was not happybefore.
Wait, I had a depression Like Ididn't even know per se.
(15:40):
I just thought this is how lifewas until God really touched me
and I just remember it's.
It felt like I was becoming alittle girl all over again.
It felt like I was becoming alittle girl all over again, and
now a whole world of opportunitywas set before me.
And now I had the opportunityto have a father, heavenly
(16:04):
father, and I had theopportunity to have a big
brother, jesus.
And that's my best friendbecause, being here in this
country living friends, I hadleft a lot of friends and family
and I thank God that cominghere I was able to get to know
people and whatnot.
But it was a new land.
That was a year after I moved,but, yeah, I remember being
(16:25):
different, that the joy of theLord.
I really believe that's what Iencountered that day.
What I encountered that day,and it was glorious.
It was glorious.
I knew I was in, I knew now Iwant a Bible.
And I recall when I was given aBible for the first time, I
remember pausing and saying Lord, I want to get this, I don't
(16:46):
want to waste your time, I don'twant to waste my time, I want
to understand what this says.
And I started to go to a Biblestudy and things started to
happen.
Margaret Ereneta (17:00):
Hey friends, make sure to share 180 with your
people.
It might be the best news theyhear today.
Now back to the show.
Edmee Chavannes (17:10):
Things started to happen.
This whole realm of thesupernatural was amazing to me,
and it's not necessarily insigns and wonders and miracles
per se, it's just the fact thatthis is even a possibility.
I felt like it was me going to.
When a kid hears they're goingto Disney most kids they're
(17:34):
happy about it.
This is like a whole new worldoutside of the world that
they're in For some reasongetting into Christ.
It felt like that.
It felt like that becausethings did not have to be
mundane anymore and then theyhave to be secular anymore.
Do you mean there's meaning tomy life?
Do you mean to tell me I'm notjust erring and just being
(17:54):
someone that just exists for thesake of existing?
And then you have your family,the meaning, significance.
Wait, we're going somewhere.
You mean I came from somewhere,but it didn't feel the same as
things being tough in the old,things being tough in this whole
new world.
It's going to be okay, I'marmed.
(18:16):
My father is with me In theother world.
He was still there trying toappeal to me and get to me, but
I did not know I was lost.
It's better when you're notlost, and so that's what
happened that day.
It was actually early September,late August, early September of
(18:38):
2003.
And from there, oh man, oh man,I would hear things like yeah,
the Lord told me.
It's like what do you mean?
The Lord told you.
Do you mean God speaks?
I had no idea God speaks.
I know we can pray to God, butI don't know what you mean.
God do you speak?
(18:58):
If that's true, I want to hear,I want to hear what you're
saying.
And then, lo and behold,starting to hear certain things,
and this leads to this and thisleads to this move of God in my
life and certain things that Ialso noticed on the heels of
being saved.
For some reason, I started towant certain things, such as
(19:20):
wanting to forgive my father.
It came to me you need toforgive your father.
Okay, call my father and tellhim listen, I forgive you.
He did not understand exactlywhat this was about, but, fine,
I needed to do it.
Margaret Ereneta (19:37):
See what happens right after Ed May says
yes to Jesus.
Friends God's at work even on aNew York City subway so cool.
Edmee Chavannes (19:48):
I remember one time commuting and there were
some Hebrew Israelites.
It's a group of people, most ofthem are Black, and they push
the narrative that the trueIsraelites are different Black
people and at the time I stillremember being pro-Black to a
(20:10):
certain degree.
But the way that they weretalking I was offended.
How dare you limit God to acolor?
How dare you put it out therethat God only prizes and values
a specific color?
And out of nowhere.
I remember arguing with theseguys and you should, I don't
know if you publicly, on the bus, publicly and I'm baby
(20:41):
christian.
And how dare you?
My god isn't any.
They're reading some fakescripture.
And that's when I realized theygot fake bible and fake
everything.
I didn't know.
How dare you insult my god?
My god is flavorful, my God iscolorful, my God is not boring.
But I was never taught.
I don't know where, I don'tknow.
I started to notice that and Ido recall I think it was the
(21:03):
moment where, whatever lingeringties I had with that life of
racism, it might have been theday that it got shut down.
Because now I'm offended andnow I'm not even talking.
Now I'm realizing how offensiveit is to limit God to an
ethnicity or a color.
It's offensive, god, it'soffensive.
(21:28):
And I remember beingrighteously angered that day.
And out of that, another thingI found out I'm not scared.
I'm not scared of people orwhat they think about me in
society the way that I used to,because now I'm publicly sitting
and standing and telling themto their faces and it's not a
(21:49):
quiet conversation on that bus.
And so I figured, oh no, we'renot doing that.
And now I believe a love is,the love of God, shed abroad on
our heart.
I didn't know the scriptures, Ididn't know what it was, but I
knew you are in Christ, you aremy brother, you are my sister.
This color, this brown, blackcolor, my color, is not
(22:13):
something that I'm proud of.
It's not something that I'mashamed of.
I'm thankful for it.
I believe it's nice, it'spretty, but that's about it.
And I implore anyone andeveryone to think the same way
of how God made them to be.
Vanilla is no better thanchocolate and chocolate is no
better than vanilla.
(22:34):
And God set me free from all ofthat.
He really did.
And now it put me in a positionwhere I realized that it is the
people of God that are my family.
It's not blood, it's not color,it's not even a nation per se.
Now, do I love my earthlyfamily?
(22:54):
Of course?
Do I love my fellow Americans?
Of course, but my fathers, mybrothers and sisters are those
who do the will of God.
This is my family, and so thatis something that I've
endeavored to share, because youhave a lot of people who have
fallen into what I fell into asa teenager, and that is this
(23:17):
whole colorism, racism, a lot ofpeople, which is idolatry,
really, it's idolatry, it'sidolatry.
I always thought you read thescripture and you think of
idolatry.
Okay, I'm, I don't know,crafting a fatted calf or no.
Idolatry is idolizing flesh,idolizing anything before God,
(23:44):
and that a lot of black peoplehave idolized their color.
If someone insults God, jesus,they might be offended, but if
someone insults their color orthey think that someone don't
like their color, they willraise hell, and that is not
(24:07):
right.
And so I was one of them, and Ithank God that God set me free
from that.
This, I guess, newfound pridethat I have in the Lord, it
translated into my wanting to goout there and bring about His
name in however ways.
He would have me do it, andbring about his name in however
(24:29):
ways he would have me do it.
Margaret Ereneta (24:31):
You'll find out how true that statement is.
Edmay's after deliverance is soamazing.
She goes from growing up hatingwhite people to finding out
about a pro-life ministrybecause of President Trump, who
actually ends up pardoningEdmay's ministry partner, who
went to prison for theirinvolvement in the pro-life
(24:53):
movement, Just being a vessel ofGod wherever he puts them.
It's so inspiring.
Edmee Chavannes (25:01):
So initially I said to myself maybe I should
share or give some tracks, andit started with that.
And then it started with that,and then it continued with
wanting to just engage withpeople and talk to people on the
streets as I would go aboutdoing what I was doing.
And in the midst of that I metmy best friend today, beverly,
(25:24):
and we started a ministry 10years ago that had to do with
the same thing, which is goingabout and around and allowing
people or facilitating the atthe well experience that the
woman in John, chapter five, had, which is to meet Jesus and
(25:44):
from there to encounter the Lord, and wanting to go out there
and tell other people what theLord had done.
And so we wanted to do that asa ministry.
And it got to a place where Ipersonally at the time I would
say about six years ago I wasworking for a friend who had a
couple of organizations and oneactually was a feminist
(26:07):
organization had a couple oforganizations and one actually
was a feminist organization andshe wanted me to do a piece, but
that piece was promotingabortion rights and I was not
okay with that, and so I told myfriend, who happened to be a
Christian.
Listen, I can't do that.
You might have to find someoneelse to do that piece Long of a
(26:30):
story short.
It was the first time that ithit me.
Oh my God, I'm taking a standon this pro-life subject.
I mean, I've always beenpro-life, even when I was not a
Christian.
I knew getting an abortion ismurder.
No one can explain that away.
I've always known that, butI've never really taken any
(26:51):
stance.
And so that, happening inJanuary 2017, within that same
week that I took that stand Iheard that there was a pro-life
march in DC, and out of allpeople that I heard it from, it
was President Trump, who hadjust become president and was
getting inaugurated that sameweek DC.
And out of all people that Iheard it from, it was President
Trump, who had just becomepresident and was getting
inaugurated that same week.
(27:11):
And so people asked him youknow, what do you think of all
the women that are going to comeand protest against you?
And I remember President Trumpsaying well, we have a right in
this country to do that, but areyou going to cover the March
for Life?
And it was a March for Life.
And that's when I found outthat, for years, pro-lifers were
gathering in DC to protest Roev Wade and protest abortion in
(27:36):
the nation.
So I went that year.
That same week I said I need tofind out what this is about, and
once I got there, I realizedthere was a whole world of
people that made it their lifegoal and mission to fight for
the unborn, to fight for life,to fight for the soul of this
nation.
In that context, of course, thegospel is what saves okay, not
(27:59):
the pro-life movement.
Aware of that.
However, pro-life movement isvery key To me.
It is as crucial and even morecrucial than slavery was an
issue in this country, becauseboth whether it's slavery or
abortion both say the person isnot a human being.
(28:23):
Abortion says that person inyou is not a human being.
Slavery says that person is nota human being.
So to me, this was somethingthat we needed to.
I needed to be involved in, andso, as we were planning to
continue to minister, as aorganization, we started to get
involved in protesting abortion.
(28:46):
We did it initially here andthere in different states, but
it got really serious when, inNew York, the governor at the
time, governor Cuomo, went alongand said okay, we're going to
allow for abortion to beperformed up until birth, and
this was in 2019, late 2018,turning into 2019, 2019, late
(29:08):
2018, turning into 2019, we'reall we need to do something
about this, and so we gotheavily involved in the pro-life
movement.
Margaret Ereneta (29:18):
Thanks for listening today.
Edmay is now a Christianactivist with At the Well
Ministries.
You can find out about them inour show notes.
God wrote your story, so it'salready awesome.
Why not share it?
Intro (29:35):
We can show you how at 180podcastcom or check out our
show notes.
No-transcript.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com