Two Things

It's been awhile.  Since July 23rd to be exact.  We've been surviving and making the best of this shitty situation that has been handed to us called Covid19.  In truth, other than not being willing or able to visit people at some distance from us, our lives have been okay.  So no big complaints.  I've got some definite thoughts on how the federal, state and local governments have handled the pandemic, but I'm going to save that for another post.  As preview, I think it's pretty simple.  They went down a road they couldn't come back from for a lot of reasons (personal, political, financial, etc) and we are now paying for it.  Plenty of blame to go around.  But like I said, for another day.

I'm not going to write about the election either.  Anything I would say would be redundant, wouldn't matter in the bigger scheme of things, and really is just more noise.  Most have gone to their corners.  So in a few weeks we'll see what the outcome is.  It will be interesting to see responses.  I'm sure there will be plenty to write about then.  If you've read this blog at all in the past you know where I stand.

So the other big, huge, enormous issue is of course race.  Since May 25, 2020 when George Floyd was murdered, that issue has been front and center in almost every social discussion occurring in so many areas be it social media, traditional media, or personal interaction.  There is just so much to unpack that once again it is daunting and whatever I say will be a blip.  But Floyd's death hit most people hard.  It was just so blatant, so deliberate, so heartbreaking to see a person's life snuffed out.  No matter what kind of person he was he didn't deserve that.  So the aftermath has been filled with marches, riots, looting, discussions, introspection, statue toppling, group analysis, and every other thing you can think of to try and shed light on what is called "systemic racism" in the United States.  We have seen the group "Black Lives Matter" rising rapidly to a level of prominence that is surprising.  We have heard demands and claims that on the face of it seem outlandish.  And yet...what to make of it all?

So I will readily admit to being one who took a step back and spent some time reading, talking, studying, watching films, and exploring as many aspects of our racial troubles as I could.  I wanted to try and understand.  If you're interested in a list of resources that I've used, leave me a note in comments and I'll provide it.  I joined a few groups to receive the perspective of different people to try and unpack all of the history and contradictions that keep popping up.  I wanted to really know about what can only be termed the shameful treatment of our fellow citizens, who happen to be black.  

I'm still on that journey, but there are a few things I've discovered.  Most prominently there are a lot of things I didn't know, or didn't remember, or didn't want to know, or to my shame, didn't care enough to know.  What are they?  Here's just a few of them:

• The unbelievable treatment of black people during the Jim Crow era from 1865 to 1965.  I guess I intellectually knew it, but it was far removed from me and I certainly didn't empathize with it.  I'm sure I heard about the conditions, the mistreatment, the violence and everything else.  But my only explanation was that it was a system that was far removed and didn't impact me growing up so I tuned it out.  
• The concept of "separate but equal" goes along with Jim Crow.  It doesn't take much digging to discover that it was never separate but equal.  I think that whole thing was a concept that was used to ease the conscious of white people.  I have friends who honestly say that it wasn't a big deal.  They lived in their area and we lived in ours.  Of course, their area was usually a shithole.  But again, most didn't want to see that.
• I sat watching 60 Minutes one night when they did a story on the Tulsa Massacre in 1922.  Essentially, an entire black community was wiped out and no one was held accountable.  No one. I was stunned that I had never heard of it.
• The redlining of housing by our federal government to keep black families out of certain neighborhoods was unknown to me.  The ability to buy a home is the American dream.  And it's so important because it creates generational wealth.  It becomes something that gives your kids and their kids expanded opportunities.  And they were denied this oh so fundamental part of the American dream.
• Similarly the denial of GI Benefits to Vets returning from WWII.  When I heard about this I was truly stunned...and pissed.  Again, it is a deliberate denial of benefits that would become generational.  And this was done to people who fought for the country.  Today it is beyond comprehension
• The amazingly cruel, unfair, and unjust incarceration of young black men that has been going on for decades and decades.  If you're interested in this story read "Just Mercy" or watch the move, "13th".  That this was a system that was built and approved is beyond me.  And it continues today.  When you hear about President Trump enacting prison reform, he's really only scratching the surface.  But at least he's doing something!
• The unbelievable disparity between funding for predominantly white schools and predominantly black schools.  No wonder Charter schools are so popular and important to black families.  These schools are many times the only way black children have a chance.
• There are others but I'll quit this little list with the thing that has perhaps impacted me the most.  I've watched several panel discussions and testimonials that include life as a black man.  At some point during these talks the man will tell the audience about "the talk" he must have with his sons about life as a black man in America.  About how to interact with white people, white police, volatile situations, shopping, and everything else.  It makes me incredibly sad and angry that I didn't have to have that talk.  That a fellow citizen of this great country has to live like that.  And that my friends is bullshit.  

So all of this studying and listening and discussing has helped me to in some small way understand.  It has also stimulated me to try and help.  But as I've had those experiences, I've also been watching what's been happening in society around this issue.  There are a couple of things that are so disturbing that it tends to dilute some of my distress and outrage that was born from learning about the issues I stated above.  Here's another little list:

• As I said above, the group "Black Lives Matter" has risen rapidly in society.  They have gained their prominence after a shooting of a black man by police.  It really didn't matter the circumstances of the shooting because the police were always wrong.  When it came to Floyd, they leaped on the obvious murder.  But here's the thing about BLM.  They were founded by two avowed Marists who openly ascribe to the overthrow of the country.  They have gained a tremendous amount of funding from companies who have donated millions of dollars to remain as woke as possible.  And try as I might, I can't find what they have done for the black community other than stir the pot and increased their coffers.  They also have coined this crazy "defund the police" slogan that has gained traction in certain quarters.  It is nothing but a distraction and how it will help is beyond me. 
• Speaking of the police, they have been increasingly under the gun.  Every time there is any kind of incident involving a white policeman and a black person, expect riots, looting, outlandish rhetoric, and the tension to ratchet up.  They are losing good, honest members in droves and at least in my opinion are the least deserving of the hate piled on them.  Because here's the thing. It's a tough, dangerous, thankless job that has to be done.  Because if we don't have law and order, we don't have a society.  Here's the other thing.  Check any source you want and you'll find the statistics on white officers killing black people are infinitesimal.  The vast majority of black deaths come from black on black crime.  So this piece of the puzzle just doesn't make sense to me.  

The issue of race in this country is complicated.  Very complicated.  These few issues I've touched on really only scratch the surface.  But it's a start.  For good or for bad that so many people, especially white people, see this as an issue that has to be understood and dealt with is a good thing.  But there aren't many quick wins.  These issues took decades and decades to build up and be recognized and it will take policy changes, attitude changes, and changes of the heart for us to achieve some success.  And I don't think we'll ever get to the ideal.  Because, well, we're human.  

I'm of a certain age where I'm not going to see a lot of it.  I hope that I've got enough time so I can see the start of some good things.  And here let me say there are a lot of good things...great things.  We can see it every day if we look hard enough.  And don't believe the naysayers and pessimists that say this country is fundamentally racist.  I call bullshit to that.  We are the country that started with the view that all are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights.  Granted that it didn't apply across the board, but it was certainly aspirational.  We had imperfect people with a dream for this country who couldn't achieve the desired equality.  But they had the dream!  People like to talk about slavery being America's original sin.  It's as if we invented it.  The reality is that there has been slavery since the dawn of man.  People have enslaved their fellow man for as long as humans have been around and it is still a huge problem today.  We argued and fussed about slavery for a hundred years before waging a war to end it.  And we lost 600,000 Americans to stop it.  We've had successes and failures but the vast majority of us in 2020 have matured to the point where we hope to achieve "a more perfect union".  There are some outliers and they need to be squashed, but I'm totally convinced in the goodness of our people.

But once again, at a certain age you don't make long range plans.  :). So I think there are two things I can do.  The first is to try and increase my understanding and empathy so that in some small way maybe I can pass on some of it to those in my circle of family and friends who remain.  As I said, there are no quick fixes.  We're only going to achieve equality in a generational manner.  Bit by bit, person by person.

Second, I've come to the conclusion that there are really two things that matter.  You can argue about history all you want and wring your hands about a statue somewhere or the name of a school somewhere or some incident that occurred sometime in the past, but there are only two things that will move the needle in the long run towards achieving equality.  Someone I really admire and is smart as they come told me one time about a business philosophy that he'd seen in a Harvard Business Review article about what makes a successful business. There are 3 things:

1. Revenues before cost
2. Better before cheaper
3. Nothing else matters

This is a fun little model that might be a bit hokey, but if you've ever run a business, it's difficult to argue with it.  So in the same mode, I've come to the conclusion that there are three things that are vitally important in the world of racial equity:

1. Education at all costs
2. Getting and holding a job
3. Nothing else matters

The key to a better life is education.  The key to understanding the world is education.  The key to establishing an attitude of achievement is education.  The key to developing the discipline of personal responsibility is education.  If there is one thing that could help advance the cause of education in the black community it is Charter schools.  Simply put, their record of success is undeniable.  They provide structure, discipline, and optimism.  But they have a very powerful enemy.  The teachers unions hate them and try to destroy them at every turn.  But the battle is engaged across the country and we'll see how it plays out.  Having a job is a close second.  Having a job provides discipline, achievement, self worth, family support, development of generational wealth.  If those two things aren't present, nothing else matters.  Simple as that.  

So in my little corner of the world I'm finding and helping minority kids stay in school.  The tool that I'm using is my Rotary Club because we believe in doing good in the world.  It's not a lot, but it's something.  As Teddy Roosevelt famously said, "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are".