The Confederate Flag: Every American's Heritage

Picture from pagecovers.com

I’ve been quiet for over month now as I’ve been working fulltime then coming home to stressful to-do lists related to grad school, and because I’ve been trying to transition the blog to a website before posting again. But the transition is proving to be more arduous than I had hoped and things keep coming up that I’d like to comment on, so here I am.

Specifically, I’d really like to put my two cents in concerning the current Confederate flag controversy. There’s been a lot said on this already, and the issue is certainly more complicated than simply “if you support the flag, you’re racist.”

I understand that there is a debate concerning the south’s motivation for attempting to secede. Some would argue that slavery was only one in a host of state’s rights issues, and was not the sole reason that young men, many of whom came from poor families that couldn’t even afford slaves, chose to take up arms and risk their lives. Many would also argue that the Confederate flag can be waved as a sign of southern pride and heritage rather than prejudice or hatred.

The purpose of this blog is not to investigate history and modern interpretations of it. Nor is it an attempt to label those who would argue for the flag as a symbol of heritage to be a pack of liars. As a matter of fact, for the purpose of the point I’d like to make here we can give those folks the benefit of a doubt.

Let’s discuss the flag in that framework...as a symbol of heritage. I can see that. As a matter of fact, I emphatically agree.

But that’s the very issue. The Confederate flag is a huge piece of America’s heritage. It’s a symbol from a very important part of our history...our Civil War. A war that tore a fledgling nation in two and threatened to destroy the new country that so many had died to create just the century before.

The Confederate battle flag a part of everyone’s heritage, not just white people and not just white southerners. Many people died fighting for it, and many people died fighting against it. For many people it promised freedom from the Union, but for many others it threatened to bar the freedom to live and dream and act as human beings rather than a pieces of property. 

Yes, it makes many feel regional pride and reminds them of the land their ancestors died to protect. But for the majority of our country’s African American population, it stands for a war that was fought at least in part to keep them in slavery. And even to other whites, it represents the rebellion their ancestors died to quell.

It represents a piece of everyone’s history, it makes everyone feel something, it harkens back to many view points of the American past.

Now am I saying that people don’t have the right to express themselves? No. Am I saying that anyone has the right to not be offended? No.

Firstly, this isn’t just “removing everything that offends someone,” as one of my Facebook friends so painfully put it. The flag is not simply "something that offends someone." That is both an inaccurate and insensitive way to refer to a symbol that reminds millions of people of the inequality that still effects their socioeconomic status today and reminds even more of us of the racial tensions we are so pained to see dividing our beloved nation.

Secondly, this isn’t just an issue of American citizens expressing themselves. The debate has largely focused on Confederate flags in public areas, such as the flag now being removed from the grounds of the South Carolina State House.

Basically, it comes down to this: to campaign for the Confederate flag to remain in public areas is not simply to champion a symbol which has positive associations for you. It’s to stick a middle finger right up at the rest of us, black and white, who have negative associations with the flag.

You’re not just saying “my heritage is important.” What you’re saying is “my heritage is more important and has more of a right to be seen than yours.”

Why Don't Black People Have Their Crap Together?

It's the question on every white person's mind. I mean, predominately black neighborhoods still have lower employment rates and higher crime rates than predominately white ones, even though slavery has been long abolished.

So what is the problem here?

Some people insist that racism is subtly but effectively infecting the institutions and workings of our society, and thus playing a significant part in the destinies of our country’s black citizens. Others would argue that in a free and modern democracy like ours, everyone is control of their own destiny, and that many blacks lack the motivation or work ethic to pull themselves out of poverty.

Which is less realistic? Rampant racism or rampant laziness? Honestly, we could theorize all day about either one. But let’s look at the numbers, shall we?

Is there actually an economic gap between blacks and whites in America?

The unemployment rate for African Americans in a given area is often about twice that of whites. And although more blacks and other minorities are attending college these days, white students are increasingly enrolling in selective institutions while blacks are mostly sticking to open access and community colleges. Students who attend quality universities are more likely to graduate, go to grad school, and earn a higher salary. Which leads us full circle back to different unemployment rates. So why don’t black people either just get a job or work hard to get into a good school? Let’s dissect those two options one at a time.

Why not just get a job?                                                                    

They’ve got affirmative action on their side, so why aren’t they out there in the work force?

Marianne Bertrand and Sendhil Mullainathan, two Faculty Research Fellows at the National Bureau of Economic Research, probed at least one facet of the issue by conducting an experiment from July 2001-January 2010. They gathered over 5,000 resumes and sent them as responses to over 1,300 employment ads in the sales, administrative support, clerical, and customer services job categories. But here’s where it gets interesting-they put false names on the resumes...some distinctively black sounding (like Lakisha and Jamal), others more white sounding (like Greg and Emily).

And what did they find? Employers are 50% less likely to call back people with black sounding names. And the trend held true across all of the occupation and industry categories covered, even those sometimes considered to be severely constrained by affirmative action laws.

Does this mean that there are a bunch of bigoted KKK leaders out there in corporate America, dreaming of bringing slavery back to the states? No. But it does mean that in general, black names still carry an unfair negative taste in the mouths of many whites. This is where racism is the most persistent...when it is the most subtle. I doubt many of the employers who unknowingly took part in this experiment would identify themselves as racists.

But of course, in this day and age, you often need an education to get an occupation. More black graduates with quality degrees from prestigious universities would certainly help deteriorate employer bias over time. So let’s move on to the next question.

Why not work hard and go to a good school?

Even if you come from a poor family, you can work hard and get a scholarship. And if you’re black, you already meet one necessary qualification for a number of them. So what’s the problem here?

Well, for one, there actually is a disconnect between the qualifications of young students of color and the caliber of university they end up going to. 30 percent of African American students who earned an A average while in high school somehow still end up attending community colleges, compared with only 22 percent of whites. That means that almost a third of black students with high GPAs are going to lower-quality colleges where less funding is spent per student and students are more likely to drop out.

But let’s back it up even further. Let’s talk about Jim Crow for a second. According to www.u-s-history.com, Jim Crow Laws were “statutes and ordinances established between 1874 and 1975 to separate the white and black races in the American South. In theory, it was to create ‘separate but equal’ treatment, but in practice Jim Crow Laws condemned black citizens to inferior treatment and facilities.” That’s right...the “separate but equal” charade lasted right into the 1970’s. Within the lifetimes of many people living in the U.S. today. As a matter of fact, the Federal Housing Association blatantly participated in institutionalized racism all the way up to 1968 by denying housing loans to people based on their ethnicity.

To think that the effect those laws had on the American people all vanished when they did is pretty illogical. And not only does it defy logic, but it defies the evidence. For example, residential communities are definitely still highly divided along racial lines.

And as UpWorthy’s Franchesca Ramsey explains, “If your grandmother was denied a home loan or employment in the '50s because she was black, that influenced where your parents grew up, which then affected where you grew up. Where you live determines where you go to school, and since the community's tax dollars support local schools, it's easy to see why poor neighborhoods end up with poorly funded schools.”

And, of course, poorly funded means poorly equipped to prepare students for the next step of their education. 

Now let's wrap it up

So, Why don’t black people have their crap together? Is it because America the Free has set before them a plate of fresh-cooked equality and they’re just too darn lazy take a bite? Or could there be more complex factors at work?

Honestly, in the interest of keeping this a blog post and not a text book, I’ve really only scratched the surface of the issue. But I hope I've given you enough to draw at least a preliminary conclusion.

Reacting to Baltimore: Sweeping Generalizations VS.. Sweeping Degeneralizations

Once again, I’ve noticed a trend in white commentary on Baltimore. And I know people are growing weary of discussing the issue. But it’s still an issue worth discussing, so discussion isn’t about to stop.  And thus, I’d like to respectfully address the following argument:

“Not all black people are thugs. Not all police officers are bad. Not all white people are racist.”

Although totally true, statements like these are not useful at best and harmful at worst.

In my experience, this sentiment can be translated in a couple of ways: “let’s just stop talking about it” or “I’m frightened by the demonization of the police, but I swear I’m not racist!” Either way, and no matter how well intentioned, it is used to shut down a very important conversation that is worth having.

You see, I completely agree that sweeping generalizations are harmful. Stereotyping all blacks as thugs is obviously harmful to black people and black communities. Stereotyping all whites as racist is unfair and distances those who are sympathetic toward the plight of their darker-skinned neighbors. And stereotyping all police officers as violent bullies paints good, integrity-filled men and women in a negative light which they never earned and diminishes the respect which they did.

But here’s the thing...sweeping degeneralizations (yes, I know that’s not technically a word) are also harmful. As I said before, they can only hinder a discourse that needs to take place no matter how messy it may get.

No, not all black people are thugs. But if someone is being treated unfairly-even killed-because of that stereotype, we need to seek justice for them and their families. And, accordingly, we need to investigate the police involved in said situation. Not only should they face a just punishment, but they should be removed from the police force so as to no longer taint the relationship of the police force with the people who rely upon them. And even though we all would like to see ourselves as free from the Scarlet Letter of racism...I’m pretty sure every last person on the planet is at least a little bit racist. It’s hard to escape unintentional stereotyping of others based on how they look or where they’re from. That’s why we all need to be willing to question our own perceptions and motives. Because racism doesn’t consist simply of the “big things” like slavery or segregation. Indeed, racism is so dangerous because it can be so subtle. 

In conclusion, I would like to congratulate Baltimore concerning chief prosecutor Mosby’s decision to charge the officers involved in the murder of Freddie Gray. Hopefully this is just one of many steps towards a freer, more equal America in which those who would abuse their power are no longer allowed to harm those over whom they wield it and no longer allowed to slander the names of others who hold that same power with more noble hands.

Reacting to Baltimore: Do You Really Need a Pretty Please?

In the discussion of Baltimore, and in the general issue of police violence towards blacks, I’m hearing a lot of similar comments from white friends and acquaintances. 

Of course, there are always those who are simply determined to not question the integrity of the police, especially against the word of urban blacks.

However, there are others who are willing to concede to the at least possible extremity of police responses in at least certain situations. And yet of all the players in this issue, the angry rioters always seem to steal the attention. I hear comments such as, “but still, there is no excuse for lawlessness” and “if you want the cops to be more nice to you, why would you burn down your own town?”

And to these questions, and with present restraint from addressing other facets of the situation, I would like to make this simple point:

As a member of the human race, my responsibility to consider the concerns of others is not contingent upon how they appeal for that consideration. My charge to acknowledge the suffering of others is not dependent upon the way in which they make me aware of that suffering. My inherent duty to face the problems interwoven into the very fabric of my homeland does not change according to how others have chosen to face those problems.

Closing my eyes to what’s in front of me because I don’t understand it does not excuse me from being a witness and closing my ears to a shouting voice because I wish it were whispering does not change the content of its words.

Whether by action or inaction, we are all writing the pages of our children and grandchildren’s history books. Consider carefully what part you’re playing.