Racism

Posted by Zach Sprague on September 3rd, 2008 filed in Politics

Last night I had my eyes opened.  I wanted to believe that America, for the most part, had moved beyond race.  I hoped and prayed we had transcended petty judgment based on skin color.  I was wrong.  This may not be the story of every American, but it was an eye opening conversation for me.

Last night, on the 45th anniversary of Dr. Kings, “Dream” speech, the coronation of Barack Obama as the Democratic Presidential nominee, in the aftermath of a resounding, impassioned speech I was aghast to be told that a Hillary supporter was still not convinced to vote for Obama and the reason……. because Obama is not white and this person just wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

ARE YOU KIDDING!!!  In this era, 45 years after Dr. King gave a speech to embody the American spirit of equality and brotherhood, justice and freedom, a man can look me in the eye and tell me that he is contemplating not voting for a presidential candidate because of his SKIN!  This is insanity, it’s not the idea that Obama is not qualified or the other candidates policies are preferable.  No, the black candidates policies are right and he seems to have good judgment, but he is black and your just not sure how to feel about that???

Slapping this man across the face would not have made him any more inspired to vote for Obama, but perhaps it would have helped him wake up to his prejudice, but even a slap across the face is not going to solve racist thoughts even though it might make the slapper feel better.  In a vain attempt to reason with the man, Obama’s countless qualifications were explained, his supreme passion, and hopefulness were reiterated time and again, but to no avail, for there is no reason in the face of such irrationality.

I realize now, we will never be rid of prejudice such as this.  When we finally learn to accept all the visible differences we will still fight and bicker over the invisible ones.  But this is the hope that Barack Obama embodies.  He allows us the wish, the dream of a tomorrow where we can look past the differences and embrace the sameness.  We are all one people, not just those of us in America, but those of us around the world.  We are the human race, regardless of skin color, bone structure, cultural background, or religious creed.  We are one people, brothers and sisters, fighting because we have not learned how to share.

The man from my story was not 70 or 80, he was in his early 40’s.  He clearly was not a Hillary supporter because of what she stands for on equality, or maybe he was, and he was just ignorant.  Maybe he wants to see women receive equal pay for equal work, gay rights, a living minimum wage, universal health care, better public education, and lower taxes for the weakest members of society, but he cannot reconcile that with his own deep rooted bigotry.

He was not confessing this secret to me out of some sentiment of hatred.  But make no mistake, it was a confession, a whispered confession for me to hear, as hard as I tried to ignore it.  Ignoring this kind of ignorance feels right, because it is a useless topic, and one that can only lead to pain and heartache.  Will my anger over his confession spur him to change?  Doubtful.  But ignore it, I could not, I could only plead the case of reason and hope, begging him to listen and understand.

I have no concept what it is like to be on the receiving end of racism.  Being white I obviously have not felt discriminated against because of these types of prejudices.  It has been easy for me to believe those ignorant concepts are just relics of a bygone era, washed away by the blood, sweat, and tears of the crusaders for equality in the decades prior my own.  I was raised with Dr. Kings speech, choosing him as the topic of a forth grade project and memorizing and giving his famous “Dream” speech before my peers at the age of nine.  I was wrong, but I have not lost hope.

Dr. Kings dream was not about one man or one people.  It was about the dream that he shared with each and everyone of us.  It was a dream shared by the founding fathers of this great nation in their resolute declaration.  Many of those men may not have fully understood the concepts laid out then, but they gave us something to aspire to, just as Dr. King did.  We have been given a great responsibility to be better than we were yesterday, to move forward instead of back.  To embrace the future instead of fear it.  To help our brothers and sisters when they fall, to believe in the goodness of people rather than the darkness.

We, all of us, are imperfect.  We make good and bad choices, but the thing that sets us apart from the rest is not the choices you made yesterday, but the choices you make today.  The choices we make today define us tomorrow and you may not erase the poor choices of yesterday, but you can learn from them and make better choices today.  All we can hope for is the strength to perceive right from wrong and act in accordance with the spirit of America and the Dream of Dr. King.  ‘All people are created equal, judge them not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character, these truths are self evident.’

This may come across as a vote for Obama rhetoric and if it does, I apologize now, for that is not my intent.  However, it does seem appropriate to characterize the man who was the specific topic of the conversation and how he is perceived by two very different individuals.  I would not presume to tell anyone who they should vote for, but I hope that your vote will be made for reasons related to actual issues and how the candidate will handle them and not based on the color of their skin.  As a matter of fact, I would hope that the decision is not based on skin color, religious preference, or cultural background, and simply based on the issues that you find important and how the candidate has addressed them.  But then again, after last night, I know I’m kidding myself if I think thats going to happen, now.. “I have a Dream…”