Letter to the editor: A future without racism is one we create together

Posted

I find myself writing this letter due to the recent hate act that a 17-year-old male from Sumter displayed on a mechanical board.

The heinous crime that led to widespread commentary and dialogue about racism and hate that still spews in many of our establishments, cities and the entire country. I have an opportunity to reflect on yet another statement that was made to undermine, humiliate and further exacerbate the plight against Black and brown members of our community. Sumter is a special place with a split in demographics, averaging 47.9% split between Blacks and whites. This is an important note to highlight because while it may be easier to make a friend who's higher or lesser in melanin, the fact that our community does not represent these same statistics in resources, education and health is a major issue for further growth of our town. The small statement that ended with a hard "er" encouraged many of our associates, co-workers and so-called friends to honk and cheer in support of the juvenile's misguided and hateful crime. Maya Angelo once said in a speech, "Those people hate me because of a decision God made for me." As a community, how do we respond to individuals who want to excite fear and perpetuate hate that has been experienced by Black American communities for centuries?

Growing up as a '90s child, we often heard conversations in passing that, "Once the old people die, racism will die" or "Racism isn't as bad anymore, it's a thing of the past."

It won't take me long to debunk this blank and misguided statement, with a 40% increase in hate crimes against Black and brown Americans tracked by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Even as I write this letter, there are policies and laws that protect white guilt but limit Black and brown promotion. This idea that the United States of America has reached its promised land is a false narrative. Each generation is called to pursue and maintain justice and freedom.

The late Dick Gregory tells a story of the coal miner who decided to be a lawyer after his shift, never cleaning himself but clothing himself in a suit, but still filthy under. During his meeting, he still smelled like the coal mine he crawled out of but would not confess that he was in one, only that he's a lawyer now. This metaphor still resonates with a country that has never confessed its sins, a country that covers itself with ideas of freedom but realities of oppression.

We are like the coal miner who never cleaned up but covered himself in a suit. We often still find our country reeking of the past filth of hate and racism that was used to stabilize this country, no matter how hard we try to cover the past up. So our question is, "How do we clean up the filth?"

I believe that a part of developing a community that is more informed than educated, it is our responsibility to hold persons accountable. I am recommending and urging that our 17-year-old who attempted this act should go through a 12-month course that focuses on Black American history, economics and previous acts of hate that have plagued Black communities. Not only have whites been lied to, but Blacks have been often lied to about our own positioning in this country. Many times, our society sees this act as "just a childish boy and a rare incident," but it is our mission to make those willing to excite hate accountable.

While doing this, it allows that person to see how their actions can domino into further detriments to an entire country, inhabiting events like Jan. 6's domestic terrorist act or the Charleston 9 shooting or states eliminating Black American history in textbooks. While information is great, applied information is knowledge. This juvenile should also give back to those he tried to destroy through community pickup days with the Clean Slate program, building projects with the United Ministries program and attending civic events like school board and county council hearings. Unfortunately, our systems of power water down these acts, and many in my community have lost faith that justice will ever be fully served.

The goal is not to victimize. Rather it is to inform a young boy that we see his actions, and we will not accept his actions. In order to find peace, we must find justice. Some may judge this as yet another bandage to a massive wound, but my PEACE stands for: Positive Education Always Corrects Errors.

It is easy to complain and align yourself to be against racism, but it is another thing to stand up and be anti-racist. I believe these steps of accountability can either change the heart of a boy or enhance his passion for hate against the people who built his beloved country.

Either way, the future isn't a place we walk into, it's a place we create together. As a community, we are standing against racism and have steps of action in place.

STERLING TA'BON

Sumter