If you are like me, perhaps you are tired of being bombarded from every angle in media; i.e. the news, movies, TV shows, and even sports figures talking about racism. It seems like no matter what you watch, read, or listen to racism is being talked about. The prevalent notion is if you are white than you are automatically racist and represent everything antithesis to an equal society.
Based upon my observation and experience, this is an unfair and just as equally racist mindset to have. Racism is alive in America today but it is not against blacks or Hispanics. It is towards white people.
The term "white privilege" has been tossed around for the last few years and I literally laugh at that term. I laugh because in my near 40 years of living, I have never had any privilege granted to me because I represent the "big bad white man". Every success and failure I have made has been on the basis of my decisions; not my skin color.
Perhaps because of my time in the Army I refuse to see racism the way the world is telling me to see it. After all, during my entire time in the Army the majority of my leaders were people of different skin color than myself. Two of my greatest First Sergeants were black. My section NCO was black. Another senior NCO was from the Philippines. One of my best friends I made in the Army was from South Vietnam. Ask them if their skin color prevented them from gaining their rank and leadership positions. Ask them if my skin color elevated me above them at any time. In fact, anyone serving in the Army during my tenure there would find it laughable that skin color privilege had anything to do with anything. The only color in the Army was green... Until it was grayish-green when they switched to those Advanced Combat Uniforms. Regardless, we treated each other as human beings, and we respected one another based on rank and position. So why can we not do in the civilian world?
Why do we have to have special days, events, channels, programming, etc., forcing us to recognize how different we are? But then the Social Justice Warriors wants us to see everyone as equal while at the same time celebrating being diverse. Well, are we equal or are we diverse? Pick one.
The notion that ALL white people are racist is as absurd as if one were to say all black people are criminals. And before anyone can cite facts about the prevalence of racism among the white culture, there are just as much facts-if not more-about the majority of prisons being filled with black people. Perhaps we should concede that facts and figures are skewed towards a certain mindset agenda?
Actor Morgan Freeman, an actor who happens to be black, once said that the best way to stop racism is to stop talking about it. Stop singling out one race over the other by having special recognition months, days, etc. He is correct. We also should not have special programs that benefit one race over the other because of the past atrocities committed. Let the past lie in the past. We should not be punishing one another for the crimes of the past.
Racism will never end because racism stems from hatred, and as long as humanity is allowed to exist on this side of eternity, then hatred will continue. Though we can never get rid of hatred, what we can do is stop listening to the lies social media, news media, anything coming from Hollywood, and especially everything coming from Capitol Hill (I am talking against all political parties), and instead listen to our hearts in regard to how we treat one another. Love is the only way to conquer hate.
Jesus tells us to love our neighbors just as much as we love ourselves. He cites this as the second greatest commandment right under loving God with everything we have. What Jesus is telling us if we truly love one another then we would not be compelled to be hateful towards one another because we would not want to be treated in such a way. Loving someone as much as we love ourselves means that just as we would want to be treated, so should we treat others the same way. If we treat ourselves badly then we need to change our hearts.
Bottom line, we need to shift our perspectives. We need to look around our neighborhoods instead of living through the media. Get off Facebook (I cancelled my account two months ago), get off Twitter every now and then, turn off the news, and get outside to interact with the real world. Knock on your neighbor's door, introduce yourselves, and build a relationship with them. Show love to those who are different, and do not deny those with differences the chance to succeed or fail on the basis of their own merit.
If we want to stop racism then just stop talking about it, stop promoting it, and silence those who continue to push true hatred.
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