There's a popular slogan running around for the prevention of certain types of crime: See Something, Say Something. The way I usually encounter this in my life is in terms of domestic abuse, rape or petty theft - college campuses being what they are. No, none of these are acceptable (just to make it clear.) It's in light of the events of the last few days, though, that I've come to understand this slogan has behind it a greater moral imperative: It's not just about preventing crime one instance at a time, it's about taking care of each other, and raising our awareness of one another, in order to make this world a safer place, moment by moment. It's about being stewards of and for humanity. I don't know how far this might reach. I don't know if people will agree with me, and I don't care anymore if they do. I see something very wrong with the way we are treating each other in this country. So I'm saying something.
America is racist. I grew up in it, and couldn't see it. It felt normal. It was all I knew, and I took it for granted that everyone experienced life the same way. I was always taught that all people were the same, and not to judge based on skin color or economics - very good things to be taught - both in school and at home. So I considered that I wasn't racist, and that my community wasn't racist, and we were the average suburban town. This meant America couldn't be racist! I was wrong. Despite the fact that I was taught to say all the right things, and act in all the right ways so that I could not be accused of being racist - as so many people are taught - I was a part of a system that is intent upon keeping a true separation between races, economic classes, nationalities, and religions. At some point, I imagine that I will delve into the other separations, but for now, we're dealing with race.
How did I come to this turn in thought? It's not an easy journey. For me, it's involved one of my very good friends, and trying to understand what she sees in another person, and why she has made certain decisions in her life. She listens to hip hop, her language choices and humor are not the stereotypical "white girl" brand. AND I WAS JUDGING HER ON IT. The question I SHOULD have been asking was "Why do I look and see that as something odd?" But for a long time, I didn't ask that question- I kept trying to understand why she would do this. It became a clear point in my head that, despite KNOWING I should not judge people by skin color, etc, I was judging my white friend because she was "acting black." Even in typing this, I wanted to offer an excuse, something to say how much it hurt to even type the phrase - because that is how deep it runs in this country, and that is how conditioned I am by the system.
AND WE AREN'T HAVING A MEANINGFUL DIALOG ABOUT IT. Not on the national level. It's not politically correct. We're taught to NOT talk about it. We're taught to not bring attention to differences is race, because "we're supposed to be equal, and to talk about it would make people feel bad." This is both true and false. It would make people feel bad - when you realize the two different worlds in which white and black people live in this country (and there are MORE racial inequalities than just black and white - don't forget the Latino community, or the Native American community, either), those with privilege SHOULD feel bad. We are taught to stick our head in the proverbial sand, unless the "problem" shows up on our doorstep - in which case, we are outraged and demand justice. We are only moved to action when the problem of the racial divide gets too close for our personal comfort. That is what privilege means - it means we aren't forced to live the difficulty - we can choose when to encounter it. Like I am doing by writing these words, in this format of relative anonymity. It's safe. To put it another way, let me ask you: "Would you still be reading this if I was a black man, or would you have skimmed past it and thought, 'just another black guy arguing about inequality'?"
OK - about now, I'm sure some folks are saying, "But I'm not privileged! I have had to work for everything I have!" Yes, you have. That is NOT the privilege I'm talking about. Nor am I talking about giving "free handouts" to people or any of the other arguments that have to deal with economics directly. I'm talking about the privilege of what I have come to call "invisible whiteness." If I walk down the street, and a black man walks down the same side of the street, two steps behind me, in the same direction, a police officer is less likely to see me - because his attentions are on what the black man is doing. He doesn't consider me a) a threat b) a criminal or c) a problem. Why not? Why am I invisible to the cop? Why does the black man already KNOW the cop is watching him? Why do I look and see an officer walking his/her beat, trying to make a living, and know that I am safe to walk up to that officer, shake their hand and have a conversation with them, while the black man knows that is a 50/50 proposition? I have been taught that police are there to serve and protect. The black man has been taught that police are there to enforce and regulate. This dichotomy is the privilege I am talking about.
And I can hear the other arguments rising now: "Stereotypes exist for a reason!" "If he has nothing to hide, why is he afraid?" He's afraid because the officer just needs "probable cause" to detain him, and the officer is much more likely to find probable cause for the black man than for me. The stereotype argument....what you're really saying is that it wouldn't be an issue if they "acted white." Take that same black man, put him in stride with me, and we're having a conversation...guess what happens? My whiteness makes him invisible, too - he's accepted because I am talking to him. Shouldn't we both be invisible from the start? If we are standing before the metaphorical figure of Lady Justice, she wears a blindfold, and doesn't know that I am white and he is black. That is not how we're functioning. That's the systemic racism that is a part of our country, and it's wrong.
How do we end it? How can we finally put this stuff to rest? How to stop the violence? How do we get better? We talk. We communicate. We make one another's lives matter to us all, not because of how much we make or what we do, but because we're all in this world together. Whether that is purely a function of Darwinism, or whether you believe in the Creation as described in the Bible, some force greater than us has determined that the world functions better when there are all kinds of people on it. We are compelled, either through religious creed or scientific belief, to reach out and discover why it is that this world NEEDS us to look different. We must stop huddling in the safety of our exclusivity from our fellow man. Open the gates and the doors of our communities, our homes, and most of all, our hearts.
Most of all, we can no longer wait around for "someone else" to start the conversation. It has to begin now, and we ALL have to be a part of it.
thanks for reading,
Me
