Racism - I Yearn to Breathe Free

Are there elements in our society that are inherently racist?  Are there people that claim an inherent racial, ethnic or religious superiority?  The sad reality is that we must say yes, yes I know a group or a person that do claim to be better than ______.  The question is why?

Some racists look back into history for the justification of their views and actions. Jared Taylor of the National Policy Institute, in his 2012 article titled - “What the founders really thought about race.  The white consciousness of U.S. statesmen.”  Concludes his overview on the place of race in our country with the following sentence.  “Today’s egalitarians are therefore radical dissenters from traditional American Thinking.”

During his discourse, Mr. Taylor makes reference to the Dread Scott Case where the Supreme Court found that people of African descent where not citizens of the United States.  However Mr. Taylor is blind to Brown v. BoE and/or the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the Constitution.  Why does Mr. Taylor fail to recognize the growth of our society?  I would suggest that individuals such as Mr. Taylor fail to comprehend that our society is living, growing and ever changing.  This change, this evolution, is normal.  Mr. Taylor and those who wish to wrap themselves in yesterdays norms are as out of step as my old bell bottom jeans.

The reality is, of course,  that race plays a significant part in our every day lives. The Rev Dr. Martin Luther King pointed out, “the most segregated hour of the week is 11:00 AM Sunday morning.”  The next time you go to church look around.  Do you see someone there in the next pew or across the aisle who looks different from you or dresses differently from you?  Oh yes, racial, national origin and/or ethnic divisions are alive and well in our country today.  

Who does not know the name Treyvon Martin?  This young man’s death has upset the political apple cart.  Almost everyone has commented on his demise and many have looked inward.  One question asked is, how did this happen today?  Mr. Martin’s passing is forcing many of us to look once more at how we view ourselves and our neighbors.

The sad reality is that hate crimes are common. In 2010, the last full year figures are available for, the FBI reported that there where 7,699 hate crimes.   The perpetrator of a hate crime may be a few good olde boys out on the town, a Sheriff’s deputy, or your neighbor.  

A few of the recent news stories show the following:

• Jackson, Mississippi - Three men pleaded guilty in open federal court to two counts of hate crimes that resulted from the murder of a black man.  The newspaper there, the Clarion Ledger, responded with an editorial titled Hate crime: Call it what it is; punish it.
• Knoxville, Tennessee - Two former Sheriff’s deputies face federal charges of violating the civil rights of a man in their custody.
• Los Angles, California - A mother of five children was beaten to death in her home.  Allegedly a hand written note was found near her body that read, “go back to your own country.”  The victim was an immigrant from Iraq.

The Statue of Liberty is seen as a “an icon of freedom and of the United States.” Almost everyone knows these lines from a plaque on the base of the Statue of Liberty, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”   Given the repeated displays of intolerance that we see played out almost daily, are those lines still true?

I yearn to breathe free.