I'm supposed to be working on my school work right now. I have a course project due in 2 weeks that's already riding a 3-month extension. (What can I say, life has been crazy). But as I sit here reading and reporting on author's such as John M. Perkins, Ray Bakke, Brenda Salter McNeil, and others who have sacrificed their lives for urban work, namely that of racial reconciliation, I can no longer stay silent on the events of Ferguson, MO.
Many thoughts flood my mind around this event. A scene from the movie Crash fills my mind. In it, a white officer who in previous scenes stood up against his partner over racist actions his partner committed ends up drawing his gun and shooting a young black man who is reaching into his pocket to pull out the same patron saint figure said officer has on his dashboard. Next, the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr fill my mind. "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." And then tears come.
I can think of two times I have blatantly been discriminated against because of my physical appearance in my life. One time growing up I overheard a guy say "but she's fat" as a reason not to hang out with me. The second was at a national speech tournament. In the round 2 of the 3 judges gave me the top speaker. The other gave me the bottom ranking. His only note on my score sheet was "make sure your tattoos are covered." Apparently my ankle tattoo was showing through my nylons and he didn't approve--it couldn't be the fact that I was talking about human trafficking and forced prostitution and maybe it hit too close to home....no... Nonetheless, these are two times I have been judged and dismissed based solely on my physical appearance. And it hurt, deeply. But a tattoo was my choice, and I can lose weight. I cannot imagine what it's like to be a young person of color and be discriminated against for no other reason than you weren't born white. Even as I type this tears silently stream down my face. And what makes me upset is that the world around me seems somewhat undisturbed by this reality, with the exception of my friends of color. Why are we okay with this? Are we that numb to the realities our brothers and sisters face? If it was a blonde haired fair skinned white male would we be so passive?
To my black, brown, olive...to my non white friends, I am so sorry. I'm so sorry for the divides that exist that create this reality in your life. I'm so sorry for my silence and the silence of the white majority. I'm sorry that more people don't care. And I'm sorry that this is still the status quo today. I know my sorries don't make any of it right, but know my heart is grieving with you today over this reality. And I commit to doing what I can to make racial divides disappear in my lifetime.
I want to say we have come so far as a nation...as a people. I want to say we have made such progress and have grown in brother and sister hood. And in many ways we have. But we have so far to go.
You know what makes me really mad in all of this? I have friends posting about the Middle East (and please keep posting. That situation is a sad reality as well), but where are the posts about Ferguson? Where are the posts about the daily realities of our inner cities?! Where are the posts about the injustice that happens every day in America? Especially from those identifying with the Christian faith. How can you care so much about Israel, Palestine, abortion, and not care about the quality of life and blatant injustice taking place towards a segment of people in your own nation? Why are we not outraged by this and what this reveals? Why aren't we upset about the daily wars taking place in our backyard and inner cities? About the daily wars over our diamonds and resources needed to make our coveted technology? I am sad Robin Williams passed away, and yes we need to become advocates for depression and suicide...but does that deserve more attention than Ferguson and Michael Brown? My newsfeed is still filled with Robin Williams updates daily (and that's fine, I'm not condemning that, I know he was love and cherished by many and it's a deep loss felt). But where are the posts on Ferguson? Where is the outrage over this injustice? Where is the sense of loss over this young man? And many like him?
This is not an anti-police rant. I know many police officers who really do where the badge to protect and serve. And I know the immense pressures and realities they face daily under the badge. For those that wear the badge, thank you for your service.
Rather this post is an anti-fear and anti-hate post. When will fear stop winning? Fear of the unknown, fear of the other, fear of safety (or unsafety). When will we choose love? When will we learn to embrace the other, the different, realizing how much we have to learn from those different than us... how much their perspective and lifestyle actually means to us and is necessary for us to grow and become more holistic humans?
I choose love. If in that process I die for choosing love, so be it. I would rather die for love than live in fear.
I'm going to post a challenge: If someone scares you, or feels like a stranger/other, or you judge someone based off appearance (color of skin, religion, tattoos, piercings, dyed hair, whatever your hang up is) make an effort to have a 5 minute conversation with them, seeking to find something you have in common. The more I engage with those different than me, the more I understand at the core of who we are we all want the same things: to love and be loved, to know and be known, to be valued, heard, cherished, and sought out. Stop looking for divides and start looking for why we're alike. After all, we're all in this journey together... this journey called life. How much better would it be if we acted like it?
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