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Thursday, July 16, 2015

A Contrast of Colors


When President Obama arrived in Oklahoma last night, this was his view from the caravan on his ride to the hotel:







I am 42 years old and I still have no answer for the people who always ask me, "Why do you let these things upset you?" I don't know. I don't understand, even, the people who said that they expected something like that would happen. I am naive and I would just assume stay that way, I suppose. But that means I will always end up being surprised by the failings of humanity and I will always, then, end up being upset by them.

I always figured the majesty of the sight of a black President would be lost on my daughter. Although she understood it to the level that I could relay it, she also gave a me a curious glare on election night 2008 while I snotty face cried in my living room. That confirmed the profound gift of the moment was not as relevant for her. I saw that as a triumph because our country really was moving forward. I had no way of knowing, however, that the hate I thought was fading was only dormant. And I had no way of knowing that it would take our long awaited progress to bring that ugliness back to fashion.

To be sure, my President is an unbelievably patient and honorable man. He has had to deal with this shit for as long as he has been in politics and probably much longer than that.  I am sure that he was warned before they got off of the plane that a white trash parade was waiting to welcome him to town. I realize that he can take it. I realize that he can go home the next night to the White House where he happens to live and, if only in the back of his mind, send a silent, "And fuck you, too," to the people who hate him for the color of his skin instead of admiring the grace with which he leads.  

The pictures are startling to me. Take a moment to look closely at them. Look beyond the flags. Look beyond the backward people posing as human beings who wave flags to insult their President. Look at the smallest faces. They're closest to the fences put up to protect him. Look at those babies who are growing up in the South with brown skin who are getting as close as they can to see their President. They should not be expected to have his grace or understanding. They should not have to differentiate their pride from the contempt of those around them. 

We simply must force this down. We, all of us, must take every opportunity we have to shame those who mean to carry narrow, mindless hate into our futures. We know them. We live near them. We work with them. We have them in our families. Every American who abides these behaviors allows them moments of acceptance. The little white faces in the crowd with the parents teaching them hate are going to grow up having never had an opportunity to rejoice at having seen their President drive through their town. They will grow up with a memory of going to disrespect the leader of their nation because he was black. 

All of the babies in the pictures below deserve to grow up innocently believing, like I did as a child, that the office of the President commands respect. They deserve to believe that the racism which allowed for slavery and Jim Crow is an ugly truth worth remembering so as to never revisit those horrors. But these babies will grow up in the same place we did if we do not force ourselves and our country to be accountable for the least among us. They will not move forward without us. They may never move forward at all. But they cannot be afforded opportunites to condemn the rest of us to find a way to excuse their voices any longer. All of those babies deserve better. And, frankly, so does my President!










8 comments:

  1. You may not know it or think it but you are a very special person Angie Brill. I think you have a big heart and a great mind and I admire you a great deal! Take care of yourself and keep up the great work you do!

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    1. Charles, you are too kind. I have a lot of bad days with my depression but you always bring a smile to my face. Thank you for your readership and continued support. It means more than you know.

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  2. Thanks for your posts to the Thom Hartmann listeners group on FB. I enjoyed your post last night and as a former Oklahoman I can only agree with your post this evening. I am so ashamed of my former State, not surprised, just really disappointed.

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    1. Thank you, Van. I really like that group. There seem to be a lot of thoughtful members. I sincerely appreciate your support :)

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  3. These "patriots" are displaying the flag of one of America's deadliest war enemies. 360,000 U.S. Soldiers died to keep America whole during the civil war. They have no respect for the U.S. or the sacrifices of the loyal U.S. Soldier.

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    1. You know what, John? That is so true... They always condemn the left to a narrow representation of hippies who hated the war/military but we are not the ones who perpetually find ways to discount them or promote those who commit treason and intolerance.

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  4. Thank you for this, this shows that there really are non people of color who care about the struggles of people of color. Faith in humanity restored, if only for a moment.

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    1. Huldra You are so sweet. I know that the majority of non people of color agree with me but are not as vocal. And, sadly, those with the bigger mouths get the most attention in our tabloid society. As soon as we all find a way to reverse that we will all move forward in spite of them. Thank you :)

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