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| Yep, that happened. |
I
was shocked today when an online friend made a blatantly racist statement about
black doctors. I was even more shocked
when he claimed I held the same beliefs, and simply wasn’t honest about it.
I
know racism exists, and I know that in the Trump Era its been allowed to come
out from under the dark stones where it festered and rotted, into the sunlight
to openly march. Whether or not Trump is a racist hardly matters anymore. His
failure to immediately openly decry the associations with White Supremacists, and
handwave away their bigotry was all the fertilizer they needed.
I
know these things.
But
I’ve never faced it so blatantly. I’m a
white male who grew up in a relatively middle-class suburb. Being an American from the West, I’m also a
bit naive about the evils of the world.
So
shell-shocked barely begins to describe the sensation when I was told, pointblank,
“You think that, too. I’m just honest
enough to say it.” That’s where, in
retrospect, I drew the line. I couldn’t
have consciously made the decision right then. I had the sensation of a poodle
who’d been struck with a ball-peen hammer.
I’ve never had such a blatant disregard for basic human rights directed
at me.
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| Yep, that happened too! |
Again,
naïve, but I’m aware of it, and actively work against it.
So,
it was with very little fanfare that I cut ties with the following:
I’m sorry [Redacted],
I like you, I've enjoyed engaging with you and exploring your point of view but
you’re far too intelligent for me to overlook such blatant racism. I'll admit
I'mm shocked that someone who holds this country in such high esteem—the Land
of the Free—would ever want to take away any kind of freedom based on skin
color alone. You might laugh this off, let it feed into your narrative and
reinforce your stance—but you really shouldn’t. It’s my hope (small, but still
there) that this lost connection serves as a real wake-up call, and it should
underline in bold red the fact that I DO NOT hold with your racism. I stand
opposed to it so much that I would rather not be your friend. Wrong is wrong,
and racism is always wrong. It’s great that you’re a Christian, because that
means there’s still a chance for you to follow Jesus’ teachings: “Stop judging
by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” (John 7:24) You should be
the first one in line to accept people for who they are, not how they appear,
nor to judge them based on preconceived notions before you ever meet them. The
idea that, based on a single physical attribute alone, you can determine the
worth of, and discredit someone, without knowing anything else about them is
completely antithetical to the Christian ethos. I hope that you eventually come
to realize how disturbing this is, and if you ever do, feel free to friend me
again.
That
is that. I have little hope that my mini-rant
will actually result in any meaningful actions—especially in the Trump Era. A little hope, but still, it would be
nice. If nothing else, though, I’m a
little more awake about the world, and as Maya Angelou said, “Do the best you
can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
