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Page 6 April 20, 2016 O PINION Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views of the Portland Observer. We welcome reader essays, photos and story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com. Lives Shaped by Race in Many Ways My crash course on the subject J ill r iChardson This spring, the University of Wiscon- sin-Madison campus has been the site of several heinous acts of racism: An Asian student was spat on and a black student received a note with ob- scenities and racial slurs slipped under her door. The university is, of course, taking it seriously. Zero-toler- ance policies for the N-word and assaults like spitting are the norm these days. But what’s the relationship between these outrageous inci- dents and the subtler varieties of racism — the sort that often goes by unrecognized, or gets dismissed as some people being “too sensi- tive” or “politically correct?” That racism is rarely dealt with, because doing so would rufle too many feathers. I’ve had a front row seat to learn about the environ- ment for students of col- or on campus. As a white woman assistant teaching a class on race, I got a crash course in the subject. But it’s possible to see it everywhere. The everyday experience of a person of color generally doesn’t involve being spat on. But it’s of- ten shaped by race in more ways than a white person might guess. A black friend told me, for ex- ample, that she selects her clothes so that she doesn’t look threaten- ing to white people. Another black friend watched cops eyeing her 13-year-old son, an honor student who was doing nothing wrong. Perhaps he forgot to think about whether he looked threatening when he got dressed that day? Or was it because he was born black and male and grew to be six feet tall? A white student asked an Asian classmate for math help. When the Asian girl said she’s no good in math, she was told: “Yes you are. You’re Asian.” A Kore- an-American friend, born in Illi- nois, gets asked how she learned such good English. It keeps going. A Chinese person is routinely mistaken for other Chinese peo- ple — you know, because they “all look alike.” A black girl’s friend tells her, “I don’t even think of you as black,” as if that’s supposed to be a compliment. Should she not be proud of her identity? A Mexican woman is told jokes about Mexican people and — when she points out they’re offensive — she’s accused of not being able to “take a joke.” These are the experiences people of color have day-in and day-out that many white people remain entirely unaware of. When whites say they aren’t racist because they’re “color- blind,” they’re blinding them- selves to these experiences of their neighbors and classmates. Such attitudes prevent us from having open and honest conver- sations about the realities of race in our country. If you don’t feel conident talking about race, start by read- ing online articles. One can learn a lot from blogs like Angry Asian Man or media outlets like The Root. And if someone you know says they ind something racist or of- fensive, ask why. Listen. Resist being defensive or immediately accusing that person of being too sensitive. Instead, if you don’t agree that it’s racist, consider that perhaps there’s something you don’t un- derstand. Don’t feel attacked — it wasn’t your fault you were born into a racist society and social- ized by it. In short, stopping the most disgusting incidents of racism should start with ending the ev- eryday racism that pervades our society. Jill Richardson is an Other- Words columnist. Distributed by OtherWords.org. The Time is Always Right to Do Right Putting our bodies and souls in motion M arian W right e delMan Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s last Sunday sermon was March 31, 1968 at the Nation- al Cathedral in Washington, D.C. before his assassination four days later. In the speech “Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolu- tion,” Dr. King said he believed a triple revolution was taking place in the world – a techno- logical revolution, a revolution in weaponry, and a human rights revolution. To face this triple revolution, he said we must ig- ure out how to develop a world perspective, eradicate racism and economic injustice, rid our nation and world of poverty, and ind an alternative to war and bloodshed – all with great urgency. I have said often that too many Americans would rather celebrate than follow Dr. King. Many have enshrined Dr. King the dreamer and ignored Dr. King the “dis- turber of all unjust peace,” as theologian Vincent Harding said. Many remember King the vo- cal opponent of violence but not the King who called for massive nonviolent civil disobedience to challenge the stockpiling of weapons of death and the wars they fuel and the excessive ma- by terialism of the greedy which deprives the needy of the basic necessities of life. And many celebrate Dr. King the orator but ignore his words about the need for reordering the mis- guided values and national investment priorities he be- lieved are the seeds ever made and challenging a President who had declared a war on poverty? Because he saw that our nation’s ills went far deeper and that fundamental structural and priorities changes had to be made and that the War on Poverty and Vietnam War were inextrica- bly intertwined. In the Cathedral sermon he an- nounced that in a few weeks he are Life, Liberty, and the pur- suit of Happiness.’ But if a man doesn’t have a job or an income, he has neither life nor liberty nor the possibility for the pursuit of happiness. He merely exists.” “We are coming to ask America to be true to the huge promissory note that it signed years ago. And we are coming to engage in dra- matic nonviolent action, to call at- Our nation and world desperately need loud sirens and ireighters for justice right now to curb morally obscene child poverty rates; wealth and income inequality; massive miseducation of poor children of color; preventable hunger and homelessness; mass incarceration and unjust criminal justice systems that criminalize the poor... of America’s downfall. Dr. King’s greatness lay in his willingness to struggle to hear and see the truth; to not give into fear, uncertainty and despair; to continue to grow and to never lose hope, despite every discour- agement from his government and even his closest friends and advisers. Contributors deserted him as he spoke out not only for an end to the Vietnam War but for a fairer distribution of our country’s vast resources between the rich and the poor. Why was he pushing the nation to do more on the tail of the greatest civil rights strides would be coming back to Wash- ington leading a Poor People’s Campaign: “We are going to bring the tired, the poor, the huddled masses . . . We are going to bring children and adults and old peo- ple, people who have never seen a doctor or a dentist in their lives . . . We are not coming to engage in any histrionic gesture. We are not coming to tear up Washington. We are coming to demand that the government address itself to the problem of poverty. We read one day, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are cre- ated equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain in- alienable Rights, that among these tention to the gulf between promise and fulillment; to make the invis- ible visible. Why do we do it this way? We do it this way because it is our experience that the nation doesn’t move around questions of genuine equality for the poor and for black people until it is confront- ed massively, dramatically in terms of direct action . . . And I submit that nothing will be done until peo- ple of goodwill put their bodies and their souls in motion.” As always Dr. King’s voice and vision were prescient and right – and speak to where our nation is today. Towards the end of his life Dr. King said to a group of friends: “We fought hard and long, and I have never doubted that we would prevail in this struggle. Already our re- wards have begun to reveal them- selves. Desegregation…the Vot- ing Rights Act…But what deeply troubles me now is that for all the steps we’ve taken toward inte- gration, I’ve come to believe that we are integrating into a burning house” riddled by excessive mil- itarism, materialism and racism. When asked what we should do Dr. King answered: “We’re just going to have to become iremen” and sound the siren of alarm. Our nation and world desper- ately need loud sirens and ire- ighters for justice right now to curb morally obscene child pov- erty rates; wealth and income inequality; massive miseduca- tion of poor children of color; preventable hunger and home- lessness; mass incarceration and unjust criminal justice systems that criminalize the poor; and bullying and demagogic politi- cians encouraging assault of non- violent protesters. The time is ripe right now to do what is right and reject the ugliness, violence and greed that have permeated too much of our political discourse. We need to move forward and not backward and teach our children we can disagree strongly without dis- agreeing wrongly. Marian Wright Edelman is president of the Children’s De- fense Fund.