Note: For me and for my readers, it is good to pause every so often to take a more personal, less intellectual and philosophical approach to equality. I call these “inside-out” exercises because they draw from deep inside our own unique experiences. When we bring some of that material up and out into the light of awareness, new insights about the work of living as equals can occur.
These are best done in small groups, drawing together people who have different backgrounds and vantage points. The practical applications of articles on this web site are always waiting to be discovered.
Auditory Bias
A recent study conducted at the University of Pennsylvania showed that court stenographers, who are trained in classroom English, and trained to record exactly what is being said in a courtroom, make errors on 2 out of every 5 sentences spoken when the speaker uses one of many black dialects (NYT Race/Related Newsletter, 2/26/19). Errors and misinterpretations in official courtroom records can harm defendants.
What proposals would you make, in light of this study, to ensure accurate court records for defendants speaking an African-American dialect?
Intersectionality
Here are a couple of brief background pieces on important voices in the intersectionality community: Sandy Ho, Alicia Garza.
https://www.newenglandada.org/blog/connecting-identities-sandy-ho
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alicia_Garza
Think about how issues of ability, gender identity and racial identity intersected in the lives of these leaders. Think about intersections in your own identity, and the identities of people you know.
Sometimes intersections among identities has positive value: such as being a healthy, wealthy and highly educated male Native American, for example. In other scenarios, the intersections add a crushing weight to the overall effect – such as being a handicapped, poor, under-educated female Native American.
Do you think public schools need to address intersectionality? What would that look like?
Talking with Neighbors
On April 20, 2017, the Winchester Star (Massachusetts) published the following letter to the editor:
What are those lawn signs popping up about town with the provocative message: “Hate has no place in this home” all about? Of course hate has no place in our homes; so why proclaim it with a lawn sign? It is a truism like the “Black Lives Matter” signs. All lives matter, no more, no less than any other race. The “Hate” sign message begs many important questions, such as: 1)Who are the haters that you, the sign owner, are referring to? 2)What, or whom, do the haters hate? 3)What is the evidence there is significant hate in our community? 4)Obviously, you are so morally superior that you may declare everyone who disagrees with you as a hater. Where, when and how did you become the Lord High Decider of Morality? How self-righteous, how divisive.
Your “Hate” sign is totally uncalled for because it says that Winchester has a hate problem. Where is it? It is offensive to imply that the rest of us – who don’t have a sign and don’t think the way you think we should – are haters. That’s insulting. It’s still a free country and I am free to think for myself. But full disclosure, I do hate, figuratively, politicians who support policies, laws and regulations that I consider unpatriotic, immoral or limit my liberties. And I also hate, figuratively, people who subliminally suggest that I am a hater.
Please do yourself and the rest of us a favor. Pull up your sign and hang it in your living room where you and your family alone may stare at it and love it. And spare the rest of us the annoyance of looking at it.
Speaking of hate, it is relevant to know that in the six weeks preceding the Presidential election, my car with its external Trump sign was vandalized five times (including a door keyed and a green hardening material poured on the hood), twice my Trump lawn signs were tossed into the street and twice they were stolen. I believe that all those acts were committed by the same one or two individuals. Still, I do not make a sweeping indictment that all Hillary voters are intolerant haters. However, I believe the “hate has no place in this home” lawn signs are self-righteous, exhibit snow-flake sensitivity and they achieve nothing.
A few days later, the Winchester star published the following response, written by a seventh-grader:
I read, with great interest, X____’s (name deletedby this author) colossal misunderstanding of the “Hate Has No Home Here” signs. X____’s first mistake was claiming the sign read, “Hate has no place in this home.” X_____ is incorrectly assuming that the owners of the sign are finding it necessary to state that there is no hate in their home. But, as the American flag depicted on the sign signifies, the posters are referencing the entire U.S.A., a country that does not tolerate hate in spite of its current leadership. Those people who have chosen to place a “Hate Has No Home Here” sign on their lawn are standing behind their belief that the country should be free of hate.
X_____ also lists questions that have remained unanswered, so it is my duty to define his burning inquiries.
- Question: “Who are the haters that you, the sign owner, are referring to?” Answer: Bigots who are trying to take away protections for transgender students, deport refugees and build a very expensive wall to keep illegal immigrants out (which is completely pointless and not helping your cause, but I digress).
- Question: “What, or whom, do the haters hate?” Answer: Perfectly innocent human beings who happen to be different from the haters.
- Question: “What is the evidence that there is significant hate in our community?” Answer: Me getting called homosexual slurs by students and adults alike.
- Question: “Obviously, you are so morally superior that you may declare everyone who disagrees with you a hater (side note: this first part is a statement, not a question). Where, when and how did you become the Lord High Decider of Morality?” Answer: Never. We just put a lawn sign down. Calm down, dude.
As I stated previously, the signs are not talking exclusively about Winchester. The signs are about the whole United States. They also aren’t implying that you are a hater if you disagree; where did you get that idea? Also, X_____, if you are going to ask us to do you a favor and take the signs down, do humanity a favor and take your Trump signs down. Finally, if you are going to say signs exhibit “snowflake sensitivity,” take a moment to think about how you are writing an angry letter to a newspaper about a lawn sign.
Keep scanning Facebook posts, tweets from Twitter and letters to the editor in your local paper that indicate that the writer stands on the opposite side of political issues from you. Begin the practice of responding to these communications as an informative, thoughtful and respectful member of the community.
