Letter submitted by Lisa Loomis, member of the Board of Education. Loomis states that she is not writing for the Board of Education.
The Middletown Eye welcomes writing from all perspectives.
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Dear White Residents of Middletown,
We live in what may be the most polarized time in modern history. Most of us consume media that reinforces our own world view; we interact with people online and in person who look and think like we do. Not only that, but that media and those people demonize and denigrate people whose world view is different from our own. This is human nature, and I am as guilty as the next person.
I’m not writing about the incident that happened at Middletown High last Friday because to limit the conversation to that incident would be missing the point. It was not an isolated incident; it is a symptom of broader issues confronting Middletown. I’m learning the only way to reverse the polarization that has occurred nationally is to start dialogues locally. After the riot in Charlottesville last August, we had a vigil in Middletown, and at the vigil, I told the story of Derek Black, an up and coming leader of the white supremacist movement, who eventually renounced white supremacy because a man named Matthew Stevenson chose to build a relationship Derek rather than shun him.
I’ve addressed this letter to white people because challenging racism is our job. It is our mess, and we need to clean it up. First, we need to find out from people of color how big and deep our mess is because we really have no idea. We need to go to communities of color, and we need to listen: what are their experiences and feelings and perspectives and what do they want and need us to do? Then we need to go to white people who think differently from us, and we need to listen to them too. Dialogue only really happens when you seek first to understand.
I’m hopeful. I have faith in the people of Middletown and in our leaders that we are ready to do this hard work. What better way to honor Dr. King’s legacy? Who’s with me?
Sincerely,
Lisa Loomis
With ya.
ReplyDeleteIs it only white people's job because blacks can't be racist?
ReplyDelete"It is our mess, and we need to clean it up." Are you joking? I had nothing to do with any so-called "mess" and I'll not take responsibility for it.
ReplyDeleteIf there is any "mess", it is a mess created by the individual attitudes and behaviors of people of all races, not the races, themselves.
Dear Anon & Insider,
ReplyDeleteYou have a sense of fairness. Understand that there are aspects to this you may not have considered. I say this as someone who would have thought both of your comments at one time.
Consider that if you are white, you have benefited from a system of racism - whether your parents were able to buy a house on the GI bill (in an area that was not red-lined because your family was white), or whether you were less likely to get busted for having a drink before age 21 or for carrying a joint, or any of the other long-documented benefits of white people under systemic racism. Consider that because not all stories get equal air-time in our society, you might not know everything about the benefits you have received.
You may not have created racism, but if you are white, and you have benefited from it. Does that seem fair to you? Don't you think it's a good thing to try and fix it instead of policing how others approach the job of fixing it?
As a white person who hasn't had to think about this every day of my life, I'm slowly beginning to learn more, partly through the work of the Middletown Racial Justice Coalition. There are lots of resources you can learn from if you want to begin, but I found it helpful to read "Waking up White" by Debby Irving and "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander.
-Anonymous Too
Thank you for the thoughtful and insightful letter. I agree completely and also hope that racist hearts and minds can eventually be changed. Until then, vigilance and a demand that our town, state, and national leaders do the right and moral thing and adopt zero tolerance policies concerning this issue.
ReplyDelete