How Far Have We REALLY Come?

[Quick note that my original drafting of this post intended to end with Dr. King's speech. As I began to write it, I felt that it was more appropriate to lead off with.]

This is something that I had begun to mentally draft a year ago, before I'd begun to blog. Unfortunately, I'd not written most of those thoughts down and I've found myself struggling to recapture them for this post as they'd first been...

Back at New Year's, I'd linked a video of and provided the lyrics for Creed's One in my post An Earworm to Start 2013 With. Perhaps, I should have saved it for this post?

Believe it or not, for this white boy, growing-up on Cape Cod in the middle of the middle class, MLK Day and, recognizing the accomplishments of the Civil Rights Movement in the 50's and 60's, was important and motivating. Despite being a household of supposedly evil conservatives, we're all firm believers in "judging a man not by the color of his skin but by the content of his character." Possibly, were it the 19th century, we would have been on the front lines of the Abolitionist Movement.

I still get goosebumps every time I hear the words of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.



We're not always perfect in our applications but, then again, none of us on any side of any issue ever are.



Being staunch supporters of judging by the content of our characters also means that we cannot hide calling things as we see them behind that charade of censorship, the PC Movement, which has so intrinsically embedded itself into our culture. I've almost allowed that sense of political correctness, so nearly beaten into my head in my waning college years (I matriculated just as the movement was gaining solid momentum in the 90's), to stop me from writing this specific post for this specific day.


We are all god's children and if I shuffle my feet and fail to to look you in the eye and address my concerns directly with you, that means that I don't truly see you as my equal and vice versa. And, yes, Mr. Holder, we are a nation of cowards for not having these difficult conversations; however, the cowardice come not in the way you intimated. I fear that in our drive to reddress past wrongs, we have succumbed to offering solutions based on guilt, self-loathing, anger, and a perpetual sense of victimization.



Ms. Parks may no longer have to fight to sit at the front of bus but, now, in our hearts, are we all not still thinking of each other as that "other"?


Overall, we are probably at the most integrated and equalized point in the history of our republic and, yet, every continuing turn yields discussions about and accusations of racism. It all continually has to come back to race, race, and yet more race until it is quite obvious that there are those of us all too willing to perpetuate past grievances and leaving us all still saturated and wallowing in the evils of racism.


The fact that any of us who dare state this are quickly shouted-down on confirms it. We are a nation of cowards for allowing this perpetuation.



As loathsome as any segregationist may have been, s/he was direct and you knew the content of that person's heart. Today, we hide ourselves in either shamed self-censorship and avoidance or direct manipulations to convince others of the continuing grievances in order to benefit ourselves, positions, or partisan affiliations.


The actions of anyone of any race—and, I don't care if you're a white politician or journalist throwing the term "racist" at anyone who dares criticize our current president (it's part & parcel of holding the office folks, get over it), preaching the inequalities instead of steps taken towards equality in order to keep interest in your political party,  or a two-bit hustler trying to provoke the us & them mentality at every turn in order to keep his/her name in the news—to intentionally provoke the perpetuation of racial divides instead of truly seeking ways to heal them is just as despicable as any hooded Klansman. One needs look no further than the manner in which minority Republicans are treated by members of their own race and supposedly liberal and tolerant members of the other party.

Let's face it, if you do these things you wear a similar hood; only, yours is all the more evil for you profess to do so for everyone's good.


A while back, Julia from Mininerd really hit the nail on the head regarding thoughts and feelings I've had for a long while  regarding race and partisan identity. In her post, The Democrat plantation, Julia fisks this NY Times article by U-Penn Professor Adolph L. Reed, Jr.

Reed doesn’t even attempt to disguise his belief that black people belong to the Democrat party–and that any black person who leaves his or her owners’ plantation must be shamed and disowned by the black community.

...

So let me get this straight.  The “how far we have come” narrative does not apply to minority Republicans, because they are all just “tokens,” trotted out to cover up the fact that Republicans hate minorities.  You know, for a group of people who supposedly hate minorities so much, we sure do support a lot of them for leadership positions.  I mean, really, if we hated these people, why in the world would we be happy that an Indian governor appointed a black Senator?  Unless . . . we’re just happy because she gave us another token on the game board?  I think maybe Reed is claiming to have psychic powers, if he can read our minds and determine that we are all lying.  (Hint: we’re not. We love Tim Scott because he is an authentic conservative with strong values.  His race is utterly irrelevant, and only the Democrats bring it up)

...

Republicans can’t prove they are not racist by supporting minority candidates, of course, because everyone knows they are just tokens.  Now, I doubt this professor would have the guts to call Lt. Col. Allen West a “token” to his face, but still, all tokens that we only pretend to support.  No, no, in order to win the black vote and prove that we aren’t huge racists, we must “take policy positions that advance black interests.”  What are those positions?  Well, not being “anti-tax, anti-union and anti-abortion,” to start, I guess.

What it boils down to is that anyone who does not toe the Democrat line on policy issues either isn’t authentically black (if outwardly black) or must be a racist (if white).  The indicator of blackness or tolerance is adherence to . . . what?  Keynesian economics?  Unlimited abortions on demand?  Disarming the public and leaving them at the mercy of armed criminals?  And if you disagree with those things?  Well, you aren’t black, and you’re probably a racist.

Definitely read the whole thing!

And, go back and listen to Dr. King's words again and try to think on what it means to "judge a man not by the color of his skin but by the content of his character."