Yes, I am aware that I am a white woman giving my opinion on a touchy, heated subject. Yes, I understand that a lot of people don’t want to hear that opinion because of the color of my skin which is highly ironic. Yes, I understand that many will see my opinion as coming from a “privileged white woman.” So, if you don’t want to hear the opinion of a “privileged white woman” then please feel free to pass on by. If you are open to thoughtful discussion and want to have serious talks about racism, please afford me the opportunity to say what is on my heart and mind. I’ll afford you the same courtesy as long as you remain respectful.
To begin with, it is important to note that the title of this piece should not be translated to mean: THERE IS NO RACISM HERE IN AMERICA! When I wrote a micro-blog on this subject last week on social media there were numerous people that interpreted my words to mean that I believe nothing racist ever happens in this country. I have never said that, nor would I ever say that because I don’t believe it. However, if you are going to read this blog with that kind of mindset about me, I suggest moving on. Nothing fruitful can come of such assumptions.
On May 29, 2020, I wrote a post on my social media accounts talking about the George Floyd case. It was a pretty benign post but it drew some ire. That’s fine, I should always anticipate some backlash with anything I write as all my writing is completely open for public consumption. I realize that not everyone is going to agree with me.
At first, I couldn’t quite wrap my mind around why a lot of people were so upset with me. In that post, I completely condemned the cop’s actions, encouraged prayers for George Floyd and his family, and cautioned against the division the media is trying to create between us all. But, as the day wore on, it started to dawn on me why people were so mad. It was because I said this:
“Let’s, also, not buy into this propaganda being pushed that America is inherently racist.”
Another point of contention was the fact that I didn’t come out and say that I was 100% convinced that this particular instance of police brutality was purely racially motivated. Even though, I conceded that it most certainly could be. I have learned with hot button topics to just wait a moment and let information and evidence come in. I hate being forced to jump to hasty conclusions without being allowed the time to look and examine all sides. Unfortunately, our political system and media try to force everyone to make a decision immediately. Heightened emotions are what fuel our decisions and conclusions. If something happens, we are all supposed to instantly take a side–NOW! DO IT NOW! And when you don’t, people label you as neutral or indifferent or “siding with the oppressors.”
But, let’s just say for argument’s sake that we know for a fact that the George Floyd killing was driven 100% by racial motives. This still does not prove that America is inherently racist.
See, if we say the word inherent, we mean, by definition, that racism is a permanent and inseparable element of our country. That’s what inherent means. It means it can’t change because it just is and there’s nothing you can do about it. I am inherently a human being. I could never change into a tree, or a cat, or a dolphin. My “humanness” is inherent to who I am. It’s coded in my DNA that I will be a human being and even if I worked as hard as I could to try to turn myself into a cat, it would be impossible.
Words matter and how we use them is vitally important. I had several people argue with me that, yes, America is inherently racist. If that is what you believe then there is no point in protests or laws against racism because racism is a permanent, inseparable attribute of America and it will never change.
But, how can that be true? Our country has permanently outlawed slavery. Where once we had it as a horrific practice, today we no longer do. That’s a change that would never be allowed if America is inherently racist. Our country has gotten rid of the degrading and despicable Jim Crow Laws. That’s a change that that would never be allowed if America is inherently racist. Our country has affirmative action laws that were put in place to give minorities the opportunities to succeed. It has voted in a black man in the highest level of office not only in our country but in the world.
While I say all this, it is true that racist attitudes still thread throughout some people in our country. I am not denying that African Americans have dealt with racist jerks. In fact, there have been occasions in my life where I have witnessed it. When our family was stationed in the panhandle of Florida, we came upon a sign one day while out driving that said, “No Blacks Allowed!” My husband and I were appalled because neither of us had ever seen anything like that before. Another example is when my husband had to attend Squadron Officer School in Montgomery, Alabama for the Air Force. His teacher, who happened to be a black woman, told the class how she and her husband had moved into a predominately white community and had been harassed right out of that community because of the color of their skin. When my husband told me this, I was again shocked. “Who are these people?” I thought to myself in disgust.
And, yes, I know this is just a few small examples. I know there are more. Again, I’m not denying that racist attitudes and behaviors exist.
One of the wonderful things about being in the military is that you are quite literally forced to live with all walks of life. When we lived in California we had a group of military friends that we spent a lot of time with and the diversity of people in that group was amazing. There were African American people, Asians from a few different countries, Latinos, and then a few white people. We all had the best time together often teasing each other about the funny stereotypes from each culture. It was all done in good fun and no one was ever offended. While at those parties, my kids played with other children from different cultural backgrounds. They watched their parents laugh and celebrate with others that didn’t look just like them. It was one of the best communities I’ve ever been a part of and I was so grateful for the opportunity. The acceptance of each culture, race, and background created a level of trust among us all. This trust allowed us to freely listen, learn, and rely on each other.
Out in the normal civilian world, though, we all tend to live in our own racial groups. This is normal human behavior; you group with people that are familiar to you. All races and cultures do this. People are very tribalistic because it makes us feel safe. We know what to expect from people that are just like us. That’s why when you go into major cities, you have places designated as Chinatown, Little Italy, and the Irish district. People gravitate towards others that are similar.
In the military, things are different. In base housing, nobody is sectioned off by race or culture. Neighborhoods are just a big mixing pot and it’s great because you learn so much from each other. In these neighborhoods, people usually become just one big family. My kids have had a far different experience than I had growing up in that they have been exposed to many different cultures. Not only that, moving around all over the place has allowed our family to see the greatness of this country and that greatness has been shaped by people of all races and cultural backgrounds.
I can comprehend how the dark mark of slavery in our past has made many black people untrusting and cynical about American institutions. I fully recognize that many of our Founding Fathers held slaves and I acknowledge that for black people that would make it very hard to jump on board and clap your hands for them.
But, even with our Founding Fathers’ faults, something inspired within Thomas Jefferson to write:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Even if Thomas Jefferson didn’t put into practice what he wrote about equality, he still wrote it. By writing it, it helped us to see that all men and women are created equal in the eyes of God. While hearts may not have been changed at the time of the Declaration of Independence, it did force us eventually to see the hypocrisy of our words and realize the error of our ways.
As a Christian, I believe that God inspired Thomas Jefferson to write those words even if he didn’t extend that belief to people of color during his lifetime. That’s fine if you don’t agree with me on why he wrote it. Granted, it took time for the people of America to get it worked out right to where slavery was abolished, Jim Crow Laws were removed and black people are allowed to participate in any and all institutions. If America was inherently racist none of this would have ever come to fruition.
What saddens me and angers me at the same time is this desire to make us all hate our own country. Hating our country is not the answer to our problems. People are even being shamed now for saying they don’t want to kneel for the anthem. We don’t have to be proud of all of America’s moments, but our past is not only made up of dark and sinister events. There is not a country in the world that is perfect and there never will be one because all countries are man-made. Human beings are flawed individuals that do stupid, reckless, dangerous, and hateful things sometimes. That’s why we so desperately need God to guide us; to remind us that man’s ways are often littered with violence, pride, and greed. Christ’s ways encourage peace, humility, and thoughtfulness.
We are still mostly a Christian nation. Christianity teaches us to have a certain amount of trust in each other and to believe that we can always strive to be better. Without a doubt, the sins of the past and, yes, even the present sins make it hard to trust. As we’ve stripped away so much of the common ground between us–belief in God, the greatness of America, the confidence in democracy–we are seeing division created. We no longer trust that our fellow man or woman really wants what is good for us because we don’t have much in common anymore.
But, even in these dark days, I thank God that we are not an inherently racist country. I thank God that we have changed things before and we can work to change things again. If we could just stop telling each other to shut up and instead trust that most people in America do want to see all races treated with respect and dignity then maybe we can find our way out of this mess. When we say that America is inherently racist it means there is no hope for any kind of change. That would mean that all the protests, all the listening, all the talk ultimately will amount to nothing other than a burning down of our country. Quite literally. I think most of us realize that that is not true and that’s why I’m against the propaganda being pushed by the media and certain politicians.
I do pray for our nation and her people. I pray that we find some common ground and learn to trust each other more. I pray that we are willing to have uncomfortable conversations in order to get to the real root of the problem and not just jump to emotional, high-charged responses and “solutions.” I pray that we seek forgiveness. And I pray that we all work to weed out sin in our own lives so that we can be better for each other in all we do.
