Commentary: Slavery needs more than an apology – CNN.com:
But here’s the funny thing: While we white Americans are busy establishing our innocence, it turns out that many black Americans are not personally angry at us for slavery. Many do want authentic acknowledgement of what happened, but not for the sake of guilt-tripping. I’ve witnessed a generosity of spirit that I have been humbled by.
Meanwhile, many African-Americans are upset about the disparate outcomes that persist and want to see everyone step up to address them. There are so many lingering ‘structural inequalities,’ as President Obama put it — ones without clear racist villains but that are embedded, like the fact that schools are funded with property taxes, so poor black neighborhoods, the legacy of earlier eras of discrimination, are not able to fund the quality schools that we say all our children deserve.
(Via CNN.)
Justice is the sound love makes when spoken in public.
Technorati Tags:
society, racism, slavery, social justice
I do not apologize for being a white american. I am what GOD has made me. I am happy with who I am and what I have EARNED in my lifetime. ALL people should be happy for who they are because that is what GOD has made them. They shuld be happy with what they have EARNED in life. Those who are not simply want to continue to play the victim. Perhaps it is easier for them becaus ethey do not have the necessary skills to imagine that they are very CAPABLE of being all that they can be. I apologize to no one unless I hurt them and I have rarely, if ever, done that.I did not sell my family into slavery, neither did my parents, grandparents, gret grandparents and so forth. Slavery has been around forever and continues to this day in one shameful shape or another. Why is it that the black community is the only community dmanding something more than an apology? and from who? Their ancestors are the ones that owe them an apology for selling them onto slavery and selling them to the Portugese. Please understand that slavery did not start in the USA in the 1800’s. Go back further and then realize that apologies are not due form white America.
And when we pump money into all those poor communities and if the people there still do not graduate, get jobs, or stay out of jail, who do we blame? And if we pump money into those communities, won’t folks that are not black also benefit? When we do this, we set back everyone else. When we go full-steam ahead with trying to make everything “equal” how is this fair to those that worked their butts off for what they have to live next to someone that got it all handed to them for nothing? I refuse to believe that anyone that is motivated cannot succeed in this country. Maybe this country needs to stop giving handouts to anyone that extends a hand and only give to those who prove they have truly tried. Our economic mess, in my opinion, is due to corporate greed and many people who spend more time finding ways to “milk the system” than they do looking for a job.
brenda and Greg,
Perhaps you should slow down for a minute and examine what was said. The author said black people want 2 things: 1) a real acknowledgement of slavery in this country and, more importantly, 2) addressing prevents a level playing field, like decent schools. How is that a handouts or an attack on your identity? If you read the entire article, you might get a nugget or two on why you are both so defensive…