Preaching to the Choir

Yesterday I attended a Town Hall meeting in Sacramento, CA.  As I left the event a colleague stated, “I’m tired of the same people attending events, we’re always 'preaching to the choir'."  As I pondered this analogy, "preaching to the choir," I realized how much this event mirrored the pageantry of a church service on Easter Sunday.  The room was packed with the same familiar faces, there were those who only came out for significant events, and lastly there were new people- individuals who knew no one, and did not know what to expect.  Much like Easter Sunday these new individuals were the “unbelievers” in “the house” that wanted to be sparked, to be touched, to walk away with a new hope and understanding; they wanted to be heard.  However, there was a message to be given, that followed the same tired rhythms and familiar syncopations.  The “choir” knew the songs, they have sung them for years.  They knew exactly where to punctuate a quote with the requisite “amen.”  The “word” went on.  Instead of a renewed hope, instead of direction, the audience members were given platitudes, pedantry, and pandering.  They were patronized for not knowing the rules…the choir sang on.   But, this time, at this event something different occurred.   The choir too was hoping for something new…a new chord in an otherwise old, tired refrain.  There stirred within the choir a sense of unrest.

I am, for lack of a better word, a “choir member.”  I attend town hall meetings, join boards, volunteer for human rights and social justice causes because the plight of my fellow human is vitally important to my life energy.  I attend events such as the town hall meeting because I desperately want these events to be successful. I want something different to be done. I cannot abide by the status quo; I seek systems change.  As Paulo Friere stated, "the educator has the duty of not being neutral." The essence of my being must speak out, to take a stand.  I do not have the luxury of neutrality...even when it goes against the choir.

It is time for our communities to move beyond reacting to events.  Becoming angry and outraged and then moving to relative silence. We can't continue to move from one news cycle to the next.   We must begin to address our culpability and complicity in reinforcing the belief systems that hinder systemic change.  The solutions to what happens in, and to, our communities rests with us.  Our children will not allow us to sing from the same hymnals.  Our children perceive this world differently as they experience the injustices of years past.  We risk irrelevance if we don’t recognize, acknowledge, and address the needs of our current times with a new approach.

The opportunity for systems change is now.  Frantz Fanon said it best, "each generation must discover its mission, fulfill it or betray it, in relative opacity."  Which do you choose?

When will it end?

I have not written on the #Ferguson travesty.  The senseless death of another man, another person, another child, takes me time.  I require time to mourn, to digest, and to think.  In the world, the useless loss of life impacts me deeply, regardless of where the individual is born or which country the person currently lives.    I have read, watched, and wept, for the loss of life internationally as well as for the portrayal of a people who are 100% American as we call those who were born and reared in the United States. Yet, somehow, these people, these Americans are still regulated to a footnote, an “other”, a qualifier within their country of birth.  As protests go forth I see the faces, the faces that look like mine, and I wonder… Why aren't all people in the United States outraged by the shootings, the deaths, ostensibly the murders, of unarmed men?  The answer to this question is complex; however, within the answer rests the reason why these incidents continue to occur. 

There are several studies and polls that review how different demographics perceive people identified as “Black” in the United States.  Amazingly, (or not), the majority of all demographics, including “Blacks” hold negative stereotypes about “Blacks.”  When a society is force-fed information and images that support the stereotype, it is quite easy to take the stereotype as truth.  Dr. David Inniss gives the analogy of motorcycle riding, he states “When you look at the obstacle that is where you will go.  You have to look at the spaces in between.  Wherever you put your focus is where the bike will go.”  How does this relate?  Ask any person if Black people go to college.  That person will inevitably speak to you of achievement gaps, disproportionality, and prison rates… focusing on the obstacles.  The conversation rarely goes to the number of individuals who successfully complete a degree program, own homes, or who do not have prison records…focusing on the spaces in between.  It is interesting, if you ask 50 people to name 2 successful individuals who are identified as Black, 9 times out of 10 you will get the name of an athlete or some other entertainer.  The names of CEOs, Entrepreneurs, college professors, rarely, if ever, are mentioned.
 

For better or for worse, this phenomenon contributes to the violence that is perpetrated on, and by, those identified as Black.   Is it right? Of course not.  However, rightness or wrongness does not prevent something from existing.  It simply is.  The social construct which is race is an antiquated concept that is in need of review.  This concept was introduced as a means to support and justify slavery.  As with all social constructs, race is contextual and variable dependent upon the time in history in which it exists.  Reevaluating race, a concept that is solely based on skin color, does not equate to lack of pride in cultural heritage.   It simply means, as a society, how we use skin color as a definer should be critically analyzed and evaluated given the context of the 21^st century. 

I posit that the Black/White binary is no longer useful.  In a global society the time has come to address global challenges of war, famine, drought, disease, extreme poverty and starvation.  This seems huge; however, by addressing and finding solutions for local problems, one is truly working on global issues. 

So, what can be done?

1.            Read a wide array of well-sourced publications.  By reading a wide array of sources one is able to receive a more complete picture.  The full story never resides within one source.  More information leads to the ability to make decisions and implement actions based on evidence vs. fear, emotion, and manipulation.

2.            Constantly evaluate personal perceptions of race, gender, class…anything that can lead to an “ism.”  Reevaluation leads to the ability to see problems in the world as “our problem” vs. “their problem.”

3.            Vote in local, state, and national elections.  Local initiatives are as important, if not more important, than national issues.  As the Ferguson incident demonstrates, there is power in local jurisdictions.

4.            Remove financial backing from socially irresponsible organizations.  This includes television programs.

How does this directly apply to the tragedy, and travesty, that is Ferguson?  First, when society begins to see all individuals, all life regardless of race, religion, creed, national origin, as important there is a shift in how stories of seemingly cavalier actions that lead to the death of others are viewed.  There is no longer the ability to click the collective tongue and “tsk, tsk” problems from afar.   Second, when society begins to think deeper and reevaluate how race is viewed the ability to build empathy amongst groups increases.  Last, the United States does not have the luxury of dividing along race, class, gender, ethnic, religious lines.  In order to actualize the social experiment that is our nation we must adapt, modify, change, evolve.  The existence of our country depends on it.