Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 2014)
®*!* ^lortlanò (Observer November 5, 2014 Page Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views o f the Portland Observer. W? welcome reader essays, photos and story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com. Race Matters: The Narrative Continues Viewing the world differently by the de R ev . B entley B ardelaben More than two months have passed since the shooting of unarmed teen M ic h a e l B ro w n in Ferguson, Mo., and no indictment has been issued against Officer Darren W il son despite testimony before a grand jury. During this period there has been elevated talk of race matters populating all media platforms. For some, the volatile subject of race and racism has become nothing more than white noise to be ignored. For oth ers, it may finally be the opening needed to achieve a deeper understanding of the sociological, economical pathology which underlie the issue. W hile for many there is a palpable sense o f déjà vu - it ju st feels like another day in North America where the media exploits a hot button issue, peddling fear to sell papers, catch eyeballs, and/or im prove ratings. R egardless of where one falls it is abundantly clear that a healthy discussion on race matters is much needed. But who can lead this national conversation? How can we begin? Recently PB S’ Point of View series televised a provocative series titled, “The Whiteness Project: Inside the White Caucasian Box.” It offers rare, bold, brave, and insightful perspectives. A ccording to their w ebsite, “The W hiteness Project is a multiplatform in vestigation into how Americans who identify as “w hite” experience their ethnicity.” While my experiences, teach ings, and cultural lenses are radically different to those persons featured, this program is worthy of viewing by all. In one of many snippets shown, a male doctor discusses his views. He asserts that “color means absolutely nothing” to him, all people are “human beings”, and “discrimination is nonsense because we are all equal.” In a word, he declares him self to be “colorblind.” Each seg ment ends with a statistic. The one fol lowing the aforementioned doctor’s seg ment reads, “73 percent of whites be lieve blacks should receive ‘no special favors’ to overcome inequality.” In another segment, a woman who labels herself as “friendly” discusses “black men in general.” She shares that we are “very beautiful people.” How ever, it is clear her experiences have trained her to fear African American men. She further states that her “smile is not an invitation to follow [her] home.” The stat following her piece declares, “More that 40 percent of white Ameri cans say ‘m any’ or ‘almost all’ black men are violent.” There are several vignettes shared and each provides a hearty starting point fo r a c o n v e rs a tio n on ra c e . T he takeaways range from “I have never come across anything that made me aware of my race” to “I don’t get the ‘white person’ treatment” to “because slavery happened, does that mean we owe black people something?” This documentary clearly underscores the reality that people of color and whites view the world through vastly different lenses. The United Church of Christ devel oped a “Sacred Conversation on Race” tool kit to help further the dialogue in our congregations. While the first step is often the hardest, the learning gleaned could greatly advance the debate (and perhaps even our society). At least, that is my hope. For additional information visit: ucc.org/ sa c re d -c o n v e rs a tio n and whitenessproject.org/checkbox. The Rev. Bentley de Bardelaben is executive fo r administration and com munications fo r the United Church o f Christ’s Justice and Witness Minis- tries. Loving My Late Brother and His Flaws Understanding the human experience by J ill R ichardson M y brother would have turned 29 the other day. Thus begins the season o f difficult anni versaries. Six years ago, my baby bro turned 23. It was 2008, a week before B arack O bam a’s first presidential election. Hope and change were in the air. I had a new job and a new car, and life was good. Then, just a few weeks later, all the hope died. But boy, did I get some change. Through a misunderstanding, a distant cousin gave me the news. It felt like an eternity as the words came out of his mouth. “I have bad news,” he said. “It’s your family.” “Not my brother,” I thought. “It’s your brother.” “Not dead,” I thought. “He died.” And that was it. No explana tion why, nothing. I called my mother and got little more infor mation. She couldn’t reach him for several days and finally they sent the landlord to check on him and, w ell...h e’d al read y b een d ead several days. That was all they knew. I found out the cause of death years later — something th a t re s p e c ta b le people in the upper- m iddle class suburb w here I grow up “just don’t do.” So we don’t talk about it. My little brother Adam was my best friend in the world. He was my only sibling. W hile we were different in so many ways, in other ways we were like one soul in two bodies. My brother was no saint. He had a heart of gold, but in the years before his death he suf fered failures and disappoint ment. At age 22, he told the family that he suffered from anxiety and he sought treatment for it. But two decades o f anxi ety aren’t cured quickly. Most o f his difficulties in life probably stemmed from his se vere anxiety, but nobody real ized that until the end. And in America, when you fail, it’s your fault. Bad grades? Work harder. Too fat? Eat less and work out, you lazy bum. A dam was the sm artest per son I ever knew . He had no plausible deniability that any bad grades w ere because o f a lack o f intelligence. This kid sat hom e and read Faulkner and Shakespeare for fun dur ing high school. W ho does that? So the label that stuck on my brother — at least in his own m ind — was lazy. I’m not blaming my family here. These are messages our culture sends us and we inter nalize them. One generation passes them on to the next. We mistake our grades and our sala ries for our self worth instead of measuring our lives in joy and love. After Adam died, I sat at the com puter writing his eulogy. I process my thoughts by writing, and only by writing could I begin to thaw my numb emotions. I didn’t even know what I was feeling until I saw the words I had written on the page: “If you ’ ve been close to Adam these past few years, you know th a t life d e a lt him a few curveballs. He struggled at times, but he was a fighter. It chal lenged each of us to try and help him move ahead while simulta neously accepting his limitations and helping him accept them too. I am sorry for all of the an guish these problems caused him, but I want to say this: I would not wish away A dam ’s shortcom ings. They made him who he was, and that is the brother I love. Please, in honor of Adam, love the important people in your life not in spite of their flaws but because of them. Shame is toxic. Empathy and love are the cure. Our flaws cause us pain, but they also make us who we are. By overcoming them, we grow stronger and deepen our under standing of the human experi ence. OtherWords columnist Jill Richardson is the author o f Recipe fo r America: Why Our Food System Is Broken and What We Can Do to Fix It. "Your Budget is our mission" BUDGET INSURANCE E N T E R P R IS E S . L L C AUTO HOME DURAN BEASLEY At Budget we work with many insurance companies to find the best fit for your needs and to fit your Budget. Call today for a free quote! LIFE BUSINESS HEALTH 503 515 4377 Fax 503 610 7011 Office 503 254 7188 1710 NE 82nd Ave Portland, OR 97220 Independent agents serving Oregon & Washington
