Speaking Up

I have worked to keep this blog out of politics or current events for the most part.  I don't see myself as an influencer.  I have no special qualifications that anyone should follow my advice or respect my opinion more than they would for anyone else breathing on the planet.  We hold these truths to be self-evident and all that jazz.

I have always considered myself politically independent.  I have voted for Democrats and I have voted for Republicans.  I have a conservative bent, with a liberal heart.  I look for Christian behavior and Christian values. I support life and living. Like many of my fellow countrymen I have been dismayed by the messages thrown wildly about in media.  I am dismayed by the stereotypes and what they lead to. 

I do believe Black Lives Matter.  I believe that it needs to be said because some people don't think so.  But, in the same way that most African Americans are not criminals or gang members, most white people are not hateful white oppressors.  Most police officers are honest law abiding servants of the community.  A few bad apples can do a lot of damage. 

Forgive me for saying this if you can, but I am thankful not to have been born black in this country at this time.  It is a supreme disadvantage.  No matter what you do, you are black.  And some people will treat you without respect.  Imagine facing that everyday.  Imagine knowing that your children and grandchildren will face that too.  It is not that there is anything wrong or less about being black, it is the way other people perceive you and treat you.

When people are being oppressed there is violence underneath the surface both from the oppressor and the oppressed.  It spills out in terrible ways.  People who are completely innocent suffer.  We all suffer whether we realize or admit it to ourselves.

I hope that somewhere in our national life we can find a return to civility and respect for each other.  Immorality, rudeness, hate speech and the like need, in my opinion, to go back into the corners, be dark and not given public voice.  We who have the privilege of feeling generally safe and comfortable and not powerless in our lives, need to consider how that privilege can be shared with all of our fellows. 

I don't claim to have answers for all of these problems.  I pray.  I speak up within my small circle.  I try to love and not judge.  But, I am more and more convinced that a return to civility and order within the public sphere would go a long long way to bringing us closer to a place of justice and freedom and hope.