Over the course of several weeks I have been writing down a few of my thoughts about current events, never quite sure where this task would lead me.
I happen to be watching ESPN one day when they aired a show from the South Side of Chicago's YMCA in conjunction with The Undefeated, where sports, race and culture intersect. I had to look that up. While watching as a 61 year old white male in American society, I began to wonder if I could relate to the subject matter, or what if anything I could do that might have an impact in the area of race relations. When one of the host used a phrase "Silence Equals Violence," that struck a cord with me. That cord being you can relate, and anyone who has ever been ostracized by the majority can relate, to the fear, ignorance and misinformation. In my case it was about HIV in the early 1980's that caused me to distrust most people outside of my inner circle of family and friends. Something which to this day has an affect on who I let into my immediate social circles. For most readers, this might not seem like a viable connection between the two issues and they may well think this is a stretch for me to be able to relate the two, but here goes.
I happen to be watching ESPN one day when they aired a show from the South Side of Chicago's YMCA in conjunction with The Undefeated, where sports, race and culture intersect. I had to look that up. While watching as a 61 year old white male in American society, I began to wonder if I could relate to the subject matter, or what if anything I could do that might have an impact in the area of race relations. When one of the host used a phrase "Silence Equals Violence," that struck a cord with me. That cord being you can relate, and anyone who has ever been ostracized by the majority can relate, to the fear, ignorance and misinformation. In my case it was about HIV in the early 1980's that caused me to distrust most people outside of my inner circle of family and friends. Something which to this day has an affect on who I let into my immediate social circles. For most readers, this might not seem like a viable connection between the two issues and they may well think this is a stretch for me to be able to relate the two, but here goes.
The links between my experience and the issues raised by the people of color living in depressed urban areas of this country is the fear, ignorance and the general indifference that is caused when the majority chooses to remain silent on any topic that does not affect them personally. Even when they think or feel what is going on is wrong. Their silence leaves a vacuum which allows other voices to rush in to fill it with fear and ignorance. In my case, it was the so called religious leaders that stated HIV was God's punishment, and the news media telling us night after night that first responders were afraid to touch someone with HIV or morticians were unwilling to handle the body of a deceased person with HIV. Finally, the person who should protect the rights of any minority, the President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, added to this fear by stating that medical experts had not definitively found that casual contact was safe as late as 1985. So I can relate to how it feels to hear all of this negativity being pumped into the universe about you and seeing few coming to your defense. Add to this that you might not be at a point in your life where you want to draw attention to yourself under these circumstances. In reality, it is hard to put yourself out there with so much negativity directed at you and the uneasiness of not knowing if anyone will stand with you. I have been there and it is a horrible place to be for those who have never been in such a place, I hope you never find out. You might well imagine what it might be like to be in a place where you feel helpless and exposed, but never really comprehending what a prison this environment can be without having experienced it for yourself. Only when I got to a point where I felt I had nothing else to lose was I able to truly break free of this bondage and find my voice. Some might conclude that these were only words, why would you let them handcuff you so? Words have a way of turning into deeds. Within the hemophilia community, we saw children forced out of their schools based solely on fear, in at least one case, their homes were shot at, and the home of a family with three boys living with hemophilia and HIV was burned to the ground after disclosing their HIV status. These actions and the silence by the majority sent a clear message you cannot trust anyone with this information in an environment of fear and ignorance.
Since the show aired, there has been a firestorm setoff by an NFL player not standing for the National Anthem before a preseason football game, When asked why, he stated that he supports Black Lives Matter and that he did not feel that the country is living up to the ideals that it espouses it stands for, freedom and justice for all, So he is silently protesting the symbol of his country. Everyone starts by stating that it is his right but few outside of black commentators want to address what he really sees as the real problems in this country. Most want to state or imply that it is disrespectful of veterans who fought and died for this country, even though he clearly stated that was not the reason for his protest during the National Anthem. Others want to say that this is not the right venue for his protest and that because he is rich, he is not a representative of his stated cause. All of these things are pivot points, to divert or distract us from having an uncomfortable conversation about race in this country. Much in the same way that homosexuals, IV drug users and sex workers were used to divert attention away from the real problem of HIV. That we had a new virus in our country and it was going to affect the blood supply which would have an impact on thousands of people who received blood or blood products. Once again, fear and ignorance and our uncomfortableness with the topic of race is allowing us to be distracted from the tangible effects skin color has on a person in our society.
Before the ESPN program or the NFL player protest, there was the distraction over the name "Black Lives Matter". There seems to be a endless source of conversation over the name of this organization or movement. Some wanted to imply that the name meant that only black lives matter which is a stretch of any interpretation of the words. All the name was trying to do was to point out, that in their view, society did not think that black lives mattered. This name also was to serve as a rallying cry for the issue. And then Dallas happened, where a black person co-oped their message by shooting and killing police officers from a Black Lives Matter protest and a new catchphrase was made popular "Blue Lives Matter". Both are real issues and both need to be addressed. However we all might have been better served if they had used the phase "All Lives Matter". But this too can be a distraction keeping us from having a real discussion about race in the United States of America, and what actions we should be doing to find that more perfect union with liberty and justice for all.
Instead we hear voices saying, the black community needs to work on solving black on black crime, as if the majority of crimes perpetrated on whites are not committed by other whites. Or they ask the black community to identify the solution to these problems. It seems very strange to demand that people who might be considered victims to first make us aware of the problems and then come up with the solutions to the problems before any of the rest of us will pay any attention at all. It is this kind of malignant neglect by the majority that keeps us in an environment where we talk past each other or worst, over the top of each other, which prevents us as a community from solving really difficult problems together. Dr Martin Luther King Jr stated this far better that I ever could, so here is an excerpt from his "Letter from Birmingham Jail" that illuminates this point.
There is no humor in thinking that this could just as well apply today as 50+ years ago. What really seems to be the problem is that we as a society do not look at things from the other persons point of view and ask a very simple question, "If I were in their shoes, how would I feel?" If we as members of the majority lose our ability to care about anyone in any minority groups, then we are in real trouble, because we have lost one of the pillars of our democratic republic, that being the majority must never impinge on the rights of the minority. We should work to insure their rights and in so doing protect all of our rights.
It is also of note to me that the first white athlete to take up the National Anthem protest happen to be a woman who is openly gay, This makes some sense to me because outside of race there are few groups more dismissed or demonized than these two subgroups of our society. Things have changed over the years for both of these groups, but not without protest and great pain. It was not because the majority woke up one morning and said this is wrong we need to change. It was the constant pressure on the majority by groups willing to protest which open our eyes to the fact that these were real people living and working around all of us, and they deserved to be treated as such with all of the rights the rest of us take for granted.
A final note, I did not come willingly or happily to supporting the National Anthem protest. My father served this country's armed forces for 22 1/2 years and was buried under its flag way too young. I would have proudly served if I had not been disqualified at birth. But, I have come to realize that for any protest to be effective, it has to disrupt our normal lives and cause us to pause, to think about what is being protested. It is then up to us to become knowledgeable about the issue, and turn that knowledge into thoughts and deeds for a positive change to occur. This, I hope my father would understand and appreciate, that I am taking a thoughtful and reasoned stand against injustice and inequality, especially because the protest made me uncomfortable and caused me to think about it,
When we get to the point where when I look at you, I see me and you look at me and see yourself, we can truly be one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all.
Silent no more!
Since the show aired, there has been a firestorm setoff by an NFL player not standing for the National Anthem before a preseason football game, When asked why, he stated that he supports Black Lives Matter and that he did not feel that the country is living up to the ideals that it espouses it stands for, freedom and justice for all, So he is silently protesting the symbol of his country. Everyone starts by stating that it is his right but few outside of black commentators want to address what he really sees as the real problems in this country. Most want to state or imply that it is disrespectful of veterans who fought and died for this country, even though he clearly stated that was not the reason for his protest during the National Anthem. Others want to say that this is not the right venue for his protest and that because he is rich, he is not a representative of his stated cause. All of these things are pivot points, to divert or distract us from having an uncomfortable conversation about race in this country. Much in the same way that homosexuals, IV drug users and sex workers were used to divert attention away from the real problem of HIV. That we had a new virus in our country and it was going to affect the blood supply which would have an impact on thousands of people who received blood or blood products. Once again, fear and ignorance and our uncomfortableness with the topic of race is allowing us to be distracted from the tangible effects skin color has on a person in our society.
Before the ESPN program or the NFL player protest, there was the distraction over the name "Black Lives Matter". There seems to be a endless source of conversation over the name of this organization or movement. Some wanted to imply that the name meant that only black lives matter which is a stretch of any interpretation of the words. All the name was trying to do was to point out, that in their view, society did not think that black lives mattered. This name also was to serve as a rallying cry for the issue. And then Dallas happened, where a black person co-oped their message by shooting and killing police officers from a Black Lives Matter protest and a new catchphrase was made popular "Blue Lives Matter". Both are real issues and both need to be addressed. However we all might have been better served if they had used the phase "All Lives Matter". But this too can be a distraction keeping us from having a real discussion about race in the United States of America, and what actions we should be doing to find that more perfect union with liberty and justice for all.
Instead we hear voices saying, the black community needs to work on solving black on black crime, as if the majority of crimes perpetrated on whites are not committed by other whites. Or they ask the black community to identify the solution to these problems. It seems very strange to demand that people who might be considered victims to first make us aware of the problems and then come up with the solutions to the problems before any of the rest of us will pay any attention at all. It is this kind of malignant neglect by the majority that keeps us in an environment where we talk past each other or worst, over the top of each other, which prevents us as a community from solving really difficult problems together. Dr Martin Luther King Jr stated this far better that I ever could, so here is an excerpt from his "Letter from Birmingham Jail" that illuminates this point.
I MUST make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the last few years, I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizens Councillor or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate who is more devoted to order than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says, "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can't agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically feels that he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by the myth of time; and who constantly advises the Negro to wait until a "more convenient season." Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.
In your statement you asserted that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence. But can this assertion be logically made? Isn't this like condemning the robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery? Isn't this like condemning Socrates because his unswerving commitment to truth and his philosophical delvings precipitated the misguided popular mind to make him drink the hemlock? Isn't this like condemning Jesus because His unique God-consciousness and never-ceasing devotion to His will precipitated the evil act of crucifixion? We must come to see, as federal courts have consistently affirmed, that it is immoral to urge an individual to withdraw his efforts to gain his basic constitutional rights because the quest precipitates violence. Society must protect the robbed and punish the robber.
I had also hoped that the white moderate would reject the myth of time. I received a letter this morning from a white brother in Texas which said, "All Christians know that the colored people will receive equal rights eventually, but is it possible that you are in too great of a religious hurry? It has taken Christianity almost 2000 years to accomplish what it has. The teachings of Christ take time to come to earth." All that is said here grows out of a tragic misconception of time. It is the strangely irrational notion that there is something in the very flow of time that will inevitably cure all ills. Actually, time is neutral. It can be used either destructively or constructively. I am coming to feel that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than the people of good will. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. We must come to see that human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability. It comes through the tireless efforts and persistent work of men willing to be coworkers with God, and without this hard work time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation.
YOU spoke of our activity in Birmingham as extreme. At first I was rather disappointed that fellow clergymen would see my nonviolent efforts as those of an extremist. I started thinking about the fact that I stand in the middle of two opposing forces in the Negro community. One is a force of complacency made up of Negroes who, as a result of long years of oppression, have been so completely drained of self-respect and a sense of "somebodyness" that they have adjusted to segregation, and, on the other hand, of a few Negroes in the middle class who, because of a degree of academic and economic security and because at points they profit by segregation, have unconsciously become insensitive to the problems of the masses. The other force is one of bitterness and hatred and comes perilously close to advocating violence. It is expressed in the various black nationalist groups that are springing up over the nation, the largest and best known being Elijah Muhammad's Muslim movement. This movement is nourished by the contemporary frustration over the continued existence of racial discrimination. It is made up of people who have lost faith in America, who have absolutely repudiated Christianity, and who have concluded that the white man is an incurable devil. I have tried to stand between these two forces, saying that we need not follow the do-nothingism of the complacent or the hatred and despair of the black nationalist. There is a more excellent way, of love and nonviolent protest. I'm grateful to God that, through the Negro church, the dimension of nonviolence entered our struggle. If this philosophy had not emerged, I am convinced that by now many streets of the South would be flowing with floods of blood. And I am further convinced that if our white brothers dismiss as "rabble-rousers" and "outside agitators" those of us who are working through the channels of nonviolent direct action and refuse to support our nonviolent efforts, millions of Negroes, out of frustration and despair, will seek solace and security in black nationalist ideologies, a development that will lead inevitably to a frightening racial nightmare.
There is no humor in thinking that this could just as well apply today as 50+ years ago. What really seems to be the problem is that we as a society do not look at things from the other persons point of view and ask a very simple question, "If I were in their shoes, how would I feel?" If we as members of the majority lose our ability to care about anyone in any minority groups, then we are in real trouble, because we have lost one of the pillars of our democratic republic, that being the majority must never impinge on the rights of the minority. We should work to insure their rights and in so doing protect all of our rights.
It is also of note to me that the first white athlete to take up the National Anthem protest happen to be a woman who is openly gay, This makes some sense to me because outside of race there are few groups more dismissed or demonized than these two subgroups of our society. Things have changed over the years for both of these groups, but not without protest and great pain. It was not because the majority woke up one morning and said this is wrong we need to change. It was the constant pressure on the majority by groups willing to protest which open our eyes to the fact that these were real people living and working around all of us, and they deserved to be treated as such with all of the rights the rest of us take for granted.
A final note, I did not come willingly or happily to supporting the National Anthem protest. My father served this country's armed forces for 22 1/2 years and was buried under its flag way too young. I would have proudly served if I had not been disqualified at birth. But, I have come to realize that for any protest to be effective, it has to disrupt our normal lives and cause us to pause, to think about what is being protested. It is then up to us to become knowledgeable about the issue, and turn that knowledge into thoughts and deeds for a positive change to occur. This, I hope my father would understand and appreciate, that I am taking a thoughtful and reasoned stand against injustice and inequality, especially because the protest made me uncomfortable and caused me to think about it,
When we get to the point where when I look at you, I see me and you look at me and see yourself, we can truly be one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all.
Silent no more!
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