Ignoring Racism Won’t Make it Disappear
The racist words used by a Republican activist and district leader directed at Yorktown Councilman Vishnu Patel are only the tip of the iceberg. I raised two black children in Yorktown, and have experienced both acceptance and love, and discrimination and racism in this town, from neighbors, in the schools, in businesses and from civil servants. All this points to the fact that racism in America and in Yorktown is built into our culture and it is going to take active work to change that culture.
There’s a lot of resistance to this. There are activists coming to local Board of Education meetings declaring that those of us who want the schools to adopt diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) protocols are creating racism. These folks are mostly white, and some are part of a nationwide right-wing effort with wealthy funders to stop teaching about racism in U.S. history. In some areas of the country, they have proposed banning books, mostly by black authors.
Pretending there is no racism does not make it go away. Only by recognizing its existence and addressing it can we create change and make a better future.
The Republican activist who uttered racist words in complete comfort at the Republican celebration is not a one-off. He has since said he is not a racist and he had been drinking that night. However, alcohol does not cause racism, it causes users to lose inhibitions and say things they might not otherwise say. Sometimes something inside us might come out, something we didn’t think was there, and sometimes it’s very ugly. The solution to this is not to turn away from it, but look at it long and hard, understand it and try to do something about it.
One thing that we can all do right now is to support DEI in the schools. Another thing we can do as individuals is to understand our biases.
There is a confidential computer test called the Implicit Association Test, the results of which are anonymous and private, which can enlighten test-takers about the unconscious associations we have absorbed from our culture about color of skin (or sexuality, disability and other areas). Go to implicit.Harvard.edu and take the test privately in the comfort of your own home. Whether or not you do this, please resolve to help address this problem. We can’t look away anymore.
Maura Gregory
Mohegan Lake
Examiner Media – Keeping you informed with professionally-reported local news, features, and sports coverage.
