A lot has been said in recent days about the state of race relations in this country, and I can scarcely believe I’m foolish enough to blunder into the middle of such a hotly contested and divisive issue. I tend to play it pretty cool, politically, on Facebook – both because of my aversion to conflict as well as a desire to maintain some semblance of impartiality because I’m a (minor) member of the media. I did post what I thought was a pretty innocuous statement regarding a voice student of mine who happens to be black (expressing my hope that he will always be treated fairly in the years to come) – but it touched off a bit of a skirmish in the comment section that very much caught me off guard and leaves me hesitant to stray into anything more controversial than the Green Bay Packers.
Then this morning, I happened to watch on TCM a truly incredible movie called “Gentlemen’s Agreement” starring Gregory Peck. Released in 1947, this film lives up to the label “ahead of its time” as well as any movie ever made. Peck plays a talented writer who is invited to NYC by a major magazine editor to write an article about anti- Semitism – but he is urged to do something besides quote a lot of statistics and theories. Peck’s character eventually comes up with a brilliant “hook” – He will pretend to be Jewish in order to experience anti-Semitism first hand. He believes it is the only way for him to write with any kind of profundity and insight about this particular issue. What he comes to see is how anti-Semitism exists not only in blunt, forthright ways …. but in all kinds of subtle ways as well …. and sometimes in people who in every other way we would regard as Good People. For a film from 1947 to approach such an issue with such nuance and subtlety is amazing to me. I had seen a number of scenes from the film, but today was the first time I got to watch the film in its entirety. It left me dumbstruck with admiration. It also left me with the inescapable realization that no one who cares about the issue of race relations can afford to remain in the relative safety of the sidelines.
So I’m going to tell you what I’m certain about – as well as what I’m not so certain about. Maybe you’ll see yourself or someone you know in these musings.
What I am certain about is:
*It is never, EVER okay to lash out in anger at people who are truly innocent of any involvement or responsibility in what aggrieves you. No matter how righteously-placed your anger or frustration may be, in no way does that give you the right to terrorize your own community and to do serious damage to businesses owned by innocent citizens caught in the crossfire of your anger.
*It is never, EVER okay to engage in sweeping generalizations about people based on something as shallow as the color of their skin. It’s often tempting to do because such generalizations and assumptions seem to help us make sense of a complicated world. But this is a case in which Simplification is not a good thing, and from there it is one small and inescapable step to prejudice and intolerance.
*It is never, EVER okay to jump to hasty conclusions about what other people have done and why – especially if you have never put yourself in their shoes, figuratively. It may seem reassuring in the short term to decide that you have a hard and fast answer to such questions, but we lose so much in such a rush to judgment, especially if we end up overlooking complicating factors.
*It is never, EVER okay to use the excuse of one’s own race as some sort of Free Get Out Of Jail Card, absolving you of any responsibility for the mistakes you have made or for misdeeds you have committed. It’s just another form of Racism and it’s just as counter-productive ….. and can be downright destructive.
*It is never, EVER okay to engage in hatred. We are called to love each other – to forgive each other – to make allowances for each other’s faults – to try and understand others and to appreciate the burdens which they bear. When in doubt? Love.