While the structure of racism may look like it is crumbling, the foundation remains. Last week Florida's newly elected Governor and his cabinet pardoned a notorious 70-year-old case of the Groveland Four. This case is the epitome of decades of racism and social injustice. However, the symptom is embedded in our nation and is increasingly becoming an issue in the present and not a part of our past. What drives us to hate? Is there a common denominator?
Racism has been a part of this country's history for over 500 years, beginning with the Native Americans. The arrival of the Europeans believed the Native Americans were heathens and savages led to genocide, mass murders, stolen lands, and the systematic institutionalizing the original owners of this land to "Indian reservations." In the 1700s the Africans were brought here as slaves, their names were changed, their identities stripped from their past, and forced to become "Christians" in the belief it would save their heathen souls.
In 1940s Japanese-Americans were targeted and by an Executive Order signed by President Roosevelt, internment camps housed thousands of American born Japanese citizens. For thousands of years, anti-Semitism has been accepted, and standard practice for racist and the Ku Klux Klan targeted them as well as the African-Americans. Since September 11th Islamophobia, a term used to describe hostility towards Islam and Muslims in the United States, it is still a common practice in our government to systematically profile people from Islamic and Muslim countries. The evidence is overwhelming. The common denominator is religion. However, the Europeans that arrived in this country were themselves fleeing Europe for religious freedom and from the poverty they lived.
Some Americans believe racism was eliminated when the nation elected a black president. This is not the case. The racist base was enraged that an African American became our country's leader and our current leader is intent on eliminating his legacy to appease that base. From trade deals, climate pact, to affordable care, Mr. Trump did not waste any time trying to dismantle the legacy of Mr. Obama's accomplishments. Many might say he is not doing anything different than other newly elected presidents, with one exception, Mr. Trump has no programs to put their place. Yes, most will insist this is what many incoming presidents have done, it is not out of the ordinary. Many, however, did not use the rhetoric in their campaign promises to build walls and stop people of color from entering our country. In Mr. Trump's case, he has no religion or moral code that he follows. His racism is purely class-based.
I recently read an article from CNN, of a General Motors manager's lawsuit for racism in the workplace. "A workplace where people declared bathrooms were for "whites only," where black supervisors were denounced as "boy" and ignored by their subordinates, where black employees were called "monkey," or told to "go back to Africa." While I read this article, I could not imagine enduring this kind of hatred. It reflects the days of Jim Crow, and General Motors is not taking any responsibly for their employee's actions. This is racism based on classes of management versus employee. However, should not be an issue unless you are raised to believe this. My first instinct was to think it cannot be happening in a town north of the Mason-Dixon, but that is where my close-minded biased went because it was born and raised in the north. So, I could not fathom such hatred.
We still have communities in this country that are all one race. If a child grows up knowing only one race, how can this child as an adult interact with other races? The child never sees the world as it is, a kaleidoscope of people of different races, religions, ethnicities, and sexual orientations. In the documentary "The Uncomfortable Truth" Loki Mulholland talks about his family history of racism and his realization that everyone has racist tendencies, it is how you react to them that is important.
As a Navy veteran and a widow of a retired Navy veteran, I have lived in many parts of the United States, I have seen my share of racism in the past fifty years. I will admit it is not like it was leading up to the 1970s, but some days it seems we are heading that way fast and without any signs of stopping. Is it human nature to try and change to people unlike ourselves? However, if we did where would the world without the creative challenges of a life filled with differences? However, think about this, when church and state become one in the same everyone will suffer from the rhetoric it creates.
