November 16, 2008
Dear Ms. Walters,
I was surprised and disappointed by your Special Friday night. I had not expected you to play such an ignorant role in the process of interviewing someone who is transgendered and opted to use his left over female organs to have a baby. Given your status in the media world, I would have expected a certain amount of sophistication and objectivity around the issue. Your shocked responses and hostile questions played more like a salacious National Enquirer piece than a credible and meaningful look into the delicate issues of complex human beings. For a woman of your exposure and opportunity, I was surprised to see you behaved like a sheltered rural housewife.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
The Nature of Discrimination
November 7, 2008
As a nation, we marked a major milestone Tuesday, as we saw past color and elected the first African American president in our history. Those who are optimistic and see this as a victory for humanity are only half right. It is, without a doubt, a tremendous victory for our black brothers and sisters and, albeit only a first step on a path to healing deep underserved wounds, a long awaited step in the very right direction. It did not, however, prove to be a true victory for humanity, as the passing of proposition 8, in California, showed us that the discriminatory nature of human beings was not lessened, but merely transferred (certainly only in part)to a new group.
The irony being that the unprecedented high turn out of black voters, who turned out to claim their voice and bring a modicum of justice to the profound struggle of their race, appears to have been the pivotal factor that led to the proposition passing. It is clear to me, that this does not represent intended oppression and discrimination. On the contrary, I view it as being quite internalized and unconscious. How else can you explain the fact that the very group of individuals who have experienced some of the greatest atrocities of our country’s doing, could feel comfortable to mark yes on a proposition who’s first line on the ballot read “Eliminates the rights of…”
When I was a freshman in high school, my friends and I joined a group of individuals who wanted to start the day together in prayer. We met to pray, as a group, behind the outer most building on campus. Within a short time, we were challenged by the school administration and told that prayer, on campus, was not allowed as it was a violation of the separation of church and state. As a group, we set out to fight for our right to assemble over our issue just as the other students in various clubs had the right to assemble over theirs. It was a heated battle with local media getting involved b finally we prevailed. People recognized that the discussion of religious beliefs is simply another example of the types of things over which students join together and share common values and interests, just as kids in the science club gathered to share discourse over the merits of science.
Again, the irony was thick as I stood up, for the second time in my life, to fight for the right of individuals to have the freedom to pursue their truth, only to stand toe to toe with the very people who were my brothers and sisters in arms in my last battle. Again, the group of people who, throughout history, have faced severe discrimination and persecution, served as the driving force to take away the rights of others. The group mandated, by their own doctrine, to love one another became possessed by righteousness and, in so doing, arrogantly chose to believe that they know what is best for others. To me, this represents a loss of faith in God and the wisdom by which he employed free will, knowing that, in freedom, most people do the right thing. Not the right thing according to the standards of others, but the right thing as guided by that one true voice within each of us which faithfully guides us to live in integrity, so long as we just listen. This is the premise on which our nation stands. Freedom is the shared value among us. It is our foundation. It is why Christians in our country are not burned at the stake, why women and children are not viewed as property and why we finally understand that all of our citizens, regardless of race or gender or … should have the right to vote. If we are to live in integrity and authenticity as a nation, we must be able to do so on the individual level first. In order to do so, we must have faith in our brothers’ and sisters’ ability to know their own heart and convictions and to choose to live within the integrity of self that sings to us from our very soul. If this is true for even one of us, then it is true for all of us.
For those fighting for the right to be treated as equal citizens, and for us who support them, it is easy to get angry, outraged even, at the blatant disregard for freedom of choice and lack of faith in the ability of individuals to know and follow their own heart. While indulging this anger can feel really good, it does not advance us. Prolonged anger and the inability to look at the deeper issues, only serves to perpetuate the very problem that enrages us.
While participating in No on 8 rally’s, prior to the election, I experienced this phenomenon among the very people I stood among who were so bravely fighting for the right of free choice. As more people drove by with religious banners and yelling unchristian things in the name of Christ, the anger fostered lead to hostile responses of the same judgmental nature. Criticisms of people’s faith in what they believe to be true. A rising intolerance and lack of willingness to consider what might drive the other to hold onto his/her beliefs. A natural, and even justifiable, response in the face of being told that “your rights don’t matter because I think I know better.” To stay there, however, is to miss the opportunity to move deeper than those who used their power to control the lives of others. Only by attempting to understand the human drive behind such behavior, will we ever have the chance of finally behaving differently.
I am angry and broken hearted, but I know that the only real thing to do is make sure, despite my sense of justification to lash out, that instead I speak out, lest I become another indistinguishable sound contributing to a song of hate, rather than being heard.
As a nation, we marked a major milestone Tuesday, as we saw past color and elected the first African American president in our history. Those who are optimistic and see this as a victory for humanity are only half right. It is, without a doubt, a tremendous victory for our black brothers and sisters and, albeit only a first step on a path to healing deep underserved wounds, a long awaited step in the very right direction. It did not, however, prove to be a true victory for humanity, as the passing of proposition 8, in California, showed us that the discriminatory nature of human beings was not lessened, but merely transferred (certainly only in part)to a new group.
The irony being that the unprecedented high turn out of black voters, who turned out to claim their voice and bring a modicum of justice to the profound struggle of their race, appears to have been the pivotal factor that led to the proposition passing. It is clear to me, that this does not represent intended oppression and discrimination. On the contrary, I view it as being quite internalized and unconscious. How else can you explain the fact that the very group of individuals who have experienced some of the greatest atrocities of our country’s doing, could feel comfortable to mark yes on a proposition who’s first line on the ballot read “Eliminates the rights of…”
When I was a freshman in high school, my friends and I joined a group of individuals who wanted to start the day together in prayer. We met to pray, as a group, behind the outer most building on campus. Within a short time, we were challenged by the school administration and told that prayer, on campus, was not allowed as it was a violation of the separation of church and state. As a group, we set out to fight for our right to assemble over our issue just as the other students in various clubs had the right to assemble over theirs. It was a heated battle with local media getting involved b finally we prevailed. People recognized that the discussion of religious beliefs is simply another example of the types of things over which students join together and share common values and interests, just as kids in the science club gathered to share discourse over the merits of science.
Again, the irony was thick as I stood up, for the second time in my life, to fight for the right of individuals to have the freedom to pursue their truth, only to stand toe to toe with the very people who were my brothers and sisters in arms in my last battle. Again, the group of people who, throughout history, have faced severe discrimination and persecution, served as the driving force to take away the rights of others. The group mandated, by their own doctrine, to love one another became possessed by righteousness and, in so doing, arrogantly chose to believe that they know what is best for others. To me, this represents a loss of faith in God and the wisdom by which he employed free will, knowing that, in freedom, most people do the right thing. Not the right thing according to the standards of others, but the right thing as guided by that one true voice within each of us which faithfully guides us to live in integrity, so long as we just listen. This is the premise on which our nation stands. Freedom is the shared value among us. It is our foundation. It is why Christians in our country are not burned at the stake, why women and children are not viewed as property and why we finally understand that all of our citizens, regardless of race or gender or … should have the right to vote. If we are to live in integrity and authenticity as a nation, we must be able to do so on the individual level first. In order to do so, we must have faith in our brothers’ and sisters’ ability to know their own heart and convictions and to choose to live within the integrity of self that sings to us from our very soul. If this is true for even one of us, then it is true for all of us.
For those fighting for the right to be treated as equal citizens, and for us who support them, it is easy to get angry, outraged even, at the blatant disregard for freedom of choice and lack of faith in the ability of individuals to know and follow their own heart. While indulging this anger can feel really good, it does not advance us. Prolonged anger and the inability to look at the deeper issues, only serves to perpetuate the very problem that enrages us.
While participating in No on 8 rally’s, prior to the election, I experienced this phenomenon among the very people I stood among who were so bravely fighting for the right of free choice. As more people drove by with religious banners and yelling unchristian things in the name of Christ, the anger fostered lead to hostile responses of the same judgmental nature. Criticisms of people’s faith in what they believe to be true. A rising intolerance and lack of willingness to consider what might drive the other to hold onto his/her beliefs. A natural, and even justifiable, response in the face of being told that “your rights don’t matter because I think I know better.” To stay there, however, is to miss the opportunity to move deeper than those who used their power to control the lives of others. Only by attempting to understand the human drive behind such behavior, will we ever have the chance of finally behaving differently.
I am angry and broken hearted, but I know that the only real thing to do is make sure, despite my sense of justification to lash out, that instead I speak out, lest I become another indistinguishable sound contributing to a song of hate, rather than being heard.
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