A Nation Divided

I am concerned about what will happen to our country after the 2016 Presidential Election, not because of whom may be elected but because of the passionate opinions of the voters. Never have I witnessed so many people voting from hatred for the “other” candidate rather than supporting the nominee who most represents their values. I am shocked by how vehemently people endorse or oppose the candidates. Friendships and families are falling apart over differing opinions. I have seen posts on social networking sites such as: “If you are going to vote for “X” candidate, then unfriend me now. I cannot be friends with someone who supports “X.” Whatever happened to respectfully disagreeing? Whatever happened to appreciating the differing viewpoints that make our nation diverse and distinctive? If we do not find a way to civilly discuss our disagreements how can we hope to teach the succeeding generations how to work through conflict and find resolution? How can we ever hope to “Make America great again”?

Then there’s the “race” problem, and yes, this is a reality. Too many people harbor implicit prejudices. If you don’t believe me, take the Implicit Association Test (IAT) developed by Banaji and Greenwald (2013). You can find the test by following this link: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html .  Research has proven that suppressed prejudices do occur in this country. Look at the case of Barak Obama when he was running for president and the hoopla over his birth certificate. You see, with suppressed prejudices, people justify their dislike for someone in the target group by covering up the biases they carry with other “valid” excuses because to be transparently prejudice is not socially acceptable. So, instead “he wasn’t born in the US” or “he’s Muslim” became the banner argument. In all reality the fact that he was a black man stirred emotional dissent in a lot of people who subconsciously harbor prejudices. If you don’t believe me, read the research that has been done for yourself.

And speaking of that, let’s take a look at police shootings. The most fascinating research that has been conducted on police bias was conducted by Correll, Park, Judd, and Wittenbrink (2002). Their experiment involved participants viewing videos of men (half of them were white; the other half were black) who were in realistic settings holding an item (half were holding nonthreatening items such as cell phones; the other half were holding a handgun). The participants won or lost points based on how they reacted. They gained 10 points for shooting someone who did have a gun, and if they failed to shoot someone holding a gun, they lost 40 points. They found that white participants were more likely to shoot when the men in the videos were black, regardless of what they held in their hands. This is disturbing!

Prejudices lie quietly below the surface until provoked and then they can be fatal, as we have seen too many times this year. Why aren’t police officers evaluated with an IAT test? If someone has implicit prejudices, training can be conducted in order to help the individual overcome those prejudices, which could very well lead to saving the life of another innocent black man. However, I am afraid this problem has been at a boiling point for far too long. Being black in this country is still a disadvantage in many areas. And please do not argue this point! Research proves my statements. Unless you can find peer reviewed, unbiased research that says otherwise, you are merely stating an opinion. My declaration is not based on my personal viewpoint but on hard evidence. I wish more than anything it were just an opinion! I have believed for far too long that equality was the reality, because that is how I feel. I have never judged a person on ethnicity, religion, or socioeconomic status. Therefore, I believed that my reality could be generalized to society as a whole. I was wrong.

We all should be praying for resolution and asking ourselves, “What can I do to change my little part of the world?” For a start, we can learn to cordially discuss our differences, come face to face with our prejudices, and then start the healing process. Otherwise, we will be a nation divided. 

An Open Letter to Cameron Sterling

I am stunned. My heart is broken for a 15 year old boy who had to watch his father’s violent, senseless death. My mind races back to a day 14 months ago when my 14 year old son had to watch his father’s violent, senseless death. And, no, the circumstances are not similar, but the loss and heartache are. As I view the video of Cameron Sterling standing next to his mother in his bright horizontally striped shirt, pulling up the collar to hide his face and somehow squelch the sobs, I am overtaken with pain as I watch him succumb to the sorrow and sob into a male relative’s arms.

Cameron, I am SO sorry! No young man should experience this kind of pain. This next year will be horrific as you walk through the fog of grief. You may block it from memory and refuse to acknowledge the pain, as my son has done; or you may engage in self-harm, as another child of mine has done. No matter what you do, the pain will stab at your heart and sting your eyes. The void will grow larger as you realize the gravity of your loss the next time you want to call or text your dad and realize he’s not there. More than anything, I wish I could wrap my arms around you and hug away the agony that grips you so tightly. I pray that through all of this you know that you have a heavenly Father who defends the orphan. He will be your Father and love you unconditionally. He alone understands the depth of your sorrow. My son and I are praying for you; and unfortunately, we know how to pray. We know what this year will look like for you and your siblings, and that is why we will not cease our prayers.

I will say this: although Cameron and Haden are the same age and have experienced a similar loss, it is not the same. Haden—a white male—does not have to worry about racial profiling. He walks down the streets of the city without fear from the police. I can honestly say that Cameron will never know that sense of peace. How many more lives must be lost before a black man can walk through the city with the same confidence as a white man?