Celebrating our diversity

Since President-Elect Barack Obama's victory, I've been thinking about what an amazing moment it is when we, as a nation, celebrate our wonderful diversity. The United States of America is a unique melting pot of immigrants from all over the world. Yet even in 2008, too many people fear deviation from the status quo.

In the Obama victory celebrations Tuesday night, across the country, the huge crowds were of every age and hue, representing America at its best. If you looked at the McCain campaign gathering in Arizona, it was hard to spot a non-white face. The Republican party needs to do some soul-searching, as it has become nearly unrecognisable. By pandering to a narrow, right-wing base of social conservatives, the party has lost its bearings.

Growing up during desegregation

I grew up in a state where for 28 years Governor Orval Faubus (1910-1994) fueled the twin flames of racism and segregation. I grew up hearing stories about Faubus's 1957 refusal to desegregate Little Rock public schools. The governor defied a unanimous US Supreme Court decision by ordering the Arkansas National Guard to stop African-American students (back then they were called blacks and still are, in much of the South) students from attending Central High School. Faubus's drastic actions led President Dwight Eisenhower to federalize the state's National Guard. Eisenhower ordered the guard to return to their armories, then sent members of the 101st Airborne Division to protect black students and enforce the court order. In retaliation, Faubus shut down Little Rock high schools for the 1958-1959 school year, prompting a flurry of lawsuits.

Harry Ashmore of the (now-defunct) Arkansas Gazette won a Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing about the crisis. Ashmore said Faubus used the Guard to block blacks from Central High School because he was frustrated by the success of his political opponents, who were using segregationist rhetoric to incite white voters.

In June 1963, two black students tried to enroll at the University of Alabama. Governor George Wallace tried to block the court-ordered desegregation. Like Eisenhower before him, President John F. Kennedy federalized the state’s National Guard, forcing Wallace's compliance. Kennedy then went on television to address the nation:

" Difficulties over segregation and discrimination exist in every city, in every State of the Union, producing in many cities a rising tide of discontent that threatens the public safety...In a time of domestic crisis, men of good will and generosity should be able to unite regardless of party or politics...This is not even a legal or legislative issue alone. It is better to settle these matters in the courts than on the streets and new laws are needed at every level, but law alone cannot make men see right. We are confronted primarily with a moral issue. It is as old as the Scriptures and is as clear as the American Constitution."

Pensive, Antoni Gaudi's Sagrada de Familia, Barcelona, Spain.

In 1992, in the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis - on the site of the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King was shot - I saw exhibits about Faubus and the "Lost Year" in Little Rock. I also heard the recording of Kennedy's confrontational phone conversation with George Wallace. Later in life, both Wallace and Faubus began to soften their segregationist stance. In 1962, Faubus broke with the White Citizens' Councils and other extremist groups. He even endorsed Jesse Jackson in the 1984 Democratic presidential primaries. But Faubus - once one of the ten most admired men in America - could not shake his reputation as a racist.

Fulbright, McClellan, Mills and Clinton

Ironically, during the same period Arkansas had three of the most brilliant and respected Democratic leaders serving in Washington. Senator J. William Fulbright (1905-1995) was the longtime chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the only senator to vote against an appropriation for the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations in 1954, chaired by the Communist-fearing Senator Joseph McCarthy. Fulbright began his distinguished career in public office as a socially-conservative populist and didn't embrace civil rights legislation until 1964.

John L. McClellan (1896-1977) was the powerful chair of the Senate Appropriations committee. Representative Wilbur D. Mills (1909-1992) served as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. And of course, former President Bill Clinton was another Arkansas politician who made a difference. I am proud to say that I met all four of these men and was influenced by their collective passion for righting wrongs.

Indignities suffered

As a child, I witnessed blacks suffering terrible indignities; having separate waiting rooms at doctor's offices and hotels and working hard at menial jobs, the women mostly as maids or cooks or taking in ironing; the men as laborers and picking crops from the fields. Out of these hardships, a musical genre known as the blues was born. So many men and women suffered indignity after indignity, yet bore them all quietly, with dignity. Without cars, in small towns without public transportation, many African-Americans were forced to walk long distances to and from their modest homes on the edge of town.

When I was 11 or 12, we moved from a house in the country to a house in town. A former pecan orchard had been converted into residential property for about nine middle-class homes, all built at different times. Just a few meters down the same street - and down a hill - the road was paved, but the houses were little more than wooden shacks in various stages of disrepair.

One woman who lived in such a house was Emma. She must have been in her '70s and not in the best of health. Yet she walked several blocks nearly every day to the home of an elderly white man, where she cleaned his house and prepared his meals. My dad - who passed the man's house on his way to work - asked Emma to ride with him. A proud woman, she didn't want to take charity. So she returned my dad's kindness by occasionally baking delicious homemade rolls and chicken pot pies for our family. We didn't know much of Emma's story; she guarded her privacy. Sometimes she was sick and probably didn't have the money to see a doctor. We didn't know Emma more than a couple of years, before she died. But she made a lasting impression.

And if Emma were white and of a certain age, we never would have called her by her first name. She would have been "Mrs. So-and-So." The familiar use of first names stems from pre-Civil War days, when blacks were called sometimes not even by their names, but by their gender, "Boy" or "Girl." Even old men were sometimes referred to as "Boy" by their white slavemasters.

Integration of schools

When public schools were ordered to integrate, a group of parents banded together to incorporate a small private school, so that their children didn't have to rub shoulders with black children. The wife of a prominent Methodist physician sent her daughter - one of my best friends - to a private Catholic school in Little Rock. Our next-door neighbors moved to a small town in the Northern part of the state that had few black residents.

It wasn't the children who had a problem with blacks; we got along fine. It was the adults. Many Southerners had been raised by bigots and simply couldn't imagine viewing the world in any way, other than in black and white. They were fearful of interaction, other than in the employer/employee mode.

We all heard horror stories about the Ku Klux Klan and their dark and nefarious deeds. We read newspaper coverage of their murder trials. Civil rights lawyer and activist Morris Dees was - and still is - my hero. He helped implement the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Dees and lawyer Joe Levin later founded the Southern Poverty Law Center,to teach tolerance, fight for racial equality and help monitor hate groups.

In college, I won an Associated Press Collegiate Journalism award for my story about community racism against a non-denominational campus choir. Later, as a reporter I covered federal court trials of members of white supremacist groups including "The Covenant, The Sword and the Arm of the Lord" and "The Order," the neo-Nazi group that robbed a bank in Ukiah, California to help finance the murder of Denver radio talk show host Alan Berg.

"Consider a person's actions, not the color of their skin."

Martin Luther King made that plea. All these years later, it's gratifying that the majority of Americans looked past race and considered character when electing Barack Obama as president. Gen. Colin Powell was right when he said we've elected a good man, who just happens to be black.

But the majority of Southern states seem locked in a conservative mindset. As a nation, we still have a long road of tolerance and understanding to travel.

Ralph Nader is a perfect example. If Fox "News" - FOX! - chides him for an outrageous statement, it must be bad. First in a radio interview, then in a television interview, Nader said he wondered if Barack Obama would be "Uncle Tom for the giant corporations." "Uncle Tom" is a reference to "Uncle Tom's Cabin," the anti-slavery novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe. "Uncle Tom" has been used as a derogative term for black Americans accused of selling out to whites.

Nader - the son of a Lebanese immigrant - once was a respected consumer advocate, who founded the Public Interest Research Group. Every four years he "rears his head," - as Sarah Palin would say - and runs for president. It's all about his ego. If Nader actually cared about good government, he would do something constructive in between his disruptive presidential campaigns.

As Americans, we need to remember that the ideals and beliefs that unite us are stronger than the fears that divide us.

Update: Gen. Wesley Clark (also from Arkansas) reports about Election night in Chicago: "As I walked onto the field in Grant Park -- there were thousands of us around the podium -- a couple of reporters asked me what I thought of this. "Transformational," I said, "but, ask Ernest Green, right here, who was one of the original young people at Central High who broke segregation in the South. Ask him!"

"It was a humbling and deeply moving experience to be there with Ernest and with former Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater, Amb. Sam Brown and his wife and so many others who have shared our passion to set this country on the right course. And to see the faces of all around us, representing all the diversity that Barack cited in his remarks..."

Cross-posted at Open Salon and Red Room.

Comments

[Anahata in ashland]

Dear Tara (and Natalie):

Thank you for your intimate sharing of your history and life in AR. Natalie's questions really touched my heart.
What do you say when you grow up in a house where African-Americans are not even "Blacks"--they are referred to as "N..."?
That was my childhood--in California.
I was the "border patrol" between an Alabaman father and a mother from Iowa. Whoo-wee--it wasn't pretty. Born in 1959, some of my earliest memories were pointing my finger at my father and telling him to stop calling African-Americans "N's". I was 6 years old when the show-down started. Finally, one night, my father went into a rage over Civil Rights rallies in the South. He called the few white female faces he could see on the TV screen "whores" and went into a fury--blind drunk from prejudice--that I was never to associate with "those N's" and to never bring one home. Well, I snapped too--and I was born a Dragon-Lady and knew it. I mounted the big green vinyl footstool in front of his "throne" , pointed my finger at him and proceeded to give him a piece of my mind. I'll never forget my words.
"You are pathetic. You preach God, and would happily kill His people. You talk about Jesus, and try to shoot me up with your nasty "N" venom. Well, I'm not listening anymore. I'm not believing you. If I was old enough, that would be my face on the TV screen. You are wrong to call people "N". You are going to die and go to hell if you don't change your ways." Yes, I really said that. He just glared at me. Speechless. I spent most of my childhood and adulthood standing for "the right thing" with my Father. He died of a massive heart attack when my son was 9 months old--never having seen his only Grandchild because he believed I wasn't a decent woman. After all, I was 33 and unmarried and now, pregnant. What a disgrace I was to his archaic beliefs. I loved my Father--so much so that I never put down the torch of Light that I prayed would one day illuminate his heart. The conflict was never with my Father but with fear. Love MUST speak if fear is not to silence the Light that we all are.
Now, more than ever, those of us that hold love in our hearts and yearn for peace and reconciliation for all people must do whatever we can every day to walk the talk of our dream.
Yes, we are the one's we have been waiting for.
Anahata in Seattle

Tara rsponds:
Anahata, thank you for sharing your personal story of courage. What a strong little girl you were and amazing woman you have become! As for the "N" word, that was prevalent in the South, but never in our house. We would not have dreamed of using such a derogatory term.

[amber]

Gosh, Tara. I am thinking right now, after reading a horrible email from my little brother who is living in South Carolina, that you may be right about some southern states... I feel like he is in a bubble of...closed-minded crap! And it is seeping into him, because he hears nothing else. *sigh*

:(

But. I have hope. I sat tonight with Wyatt and watched Obama's speech again...And then we watched King's "Dream" speech...And I know that our world will change because of kids like him. Because he is growing up in a Post-Obama world.

:)

[urbanartiste]

"Difficulties over segregation and discrimination exist in every city, in every State of the Union...This is not even a legal or legislative issue alone."

I think that quote reflects the place where I live. The law enables us to right the wrongs, but culture creates a blockade. Time does help change people's attitudes and I think we have moved forward in terms of race, but class issues which can gloss over race, ethnicity and gender still exists stronger than ever. I bring this up because although a place like NYC, where I grew up, appears to be a melting pot, groups still segregate themselves in culture, social circles and religion. Travel a few miles out into the suburbs of NYC and there is extreme segregation. Schools may be integrated in terms of race, but they are still very segregated due to economics. The same groups continue to get discriminated against in terms of funding because so much is based on income and taxes.

We also have interracial marriages in my family and people are still quite unaccepting. People may behave respectful at forced family obligations, but they are not embracing outside of these events. It is very difficult to change engraved prejudices. I find that when a person has never had a true friend of another race, they generally judge on stereotypes and prejudices.

[Allegra]

What could I add to this? A simple and humble thank you. To know that we will continue to educate people about the evils of racism, the incredible price children who are exposed to it will pay, and I don't believe it as John McCain that " as Americans we fight and never give up". I believe that much more important than fighting racism is to expose it, to educate people about the damages of that societal cancer and not to fight their beliefs but to help them correct them. I believe our new president will be a shining example of dignity and courage under fire, and his wisdom will reside in hearing all voices, and for those of you who want to add your voice to the chorus :

http://change.gov

I continue to believe with all my heart that the pen is mightier than the cannon and in the end, the higher angels will win the battle without having to fire a single shot.

[nathalie]

what do you say or do when you work with colleagues who say that they don't give a "s..." about obama and the fact that he won the elections and what repercution this can have in france or in the world ?

what do you say or do when people you work with are a bit strange with you because you were so happy about the fact that obama was elected ?

what do you say or do when people you work with make racist comments aloud and are a bit strange with you when you try to say things that are inclusive and not discriminatory ?

Tara responds:
Nathalie, as you know, there always will be people who refuse to acknowledge the truth; who see only what their personal limitations allow them to see. What I say to people like that is "I'm sorry you feel that way. I think you are wrong. Perhaps you need to read more and become better informed about the situation. Maybe if you learned about the FACTS - instead of relying on rumour, innuendo or lies - you'd have a different attitude."

That being said, some people get angry, when challenged. They will not listen to reason and can't see beyond their own personal prejudices. Some people simply will never see the light; it's simply not in them to think about other points of view. And some people simply don't care about politics or what happens in the world. They think such things don't affect them personally and take our freedoms and liberties for granted. It's only when something catastrophic happens to affect them personally that they sit up and take notice. Too many people are sleeping or lazy and simply don't want to be bothered by anything to do with government or politics.

So it's up to the rest of us - who do care - to do more to effect change for the better. Thanks for caring, about our election and our relations with France. These things are important!

[rochambeau]

Dear Tara,
Like Tangobaby, I grew up in a diverse school. That just was the norm. Thank GOD!! It has shaped the way I look at life.

Now thought, I'm closer to where you grew up and the same stuff is still going on pretty much in a lesser degree.
I feel it is one of the reasons I am supposed to be here right now.

Thank you for this post.
It makes my heart smile that you have found your way to the truth, no matter where you grew up!

xox
Constance

Tara responds:
Thank you, Constance. I'm lucky that my parents were not prejudiced and neither were most of the people around me. It was (and still is) dismaying to see bigotry pervasive in certain pockets of the South, particularly in rural areas. Of course it's not just a problem for African-Americans, but for many Latino immigrants, particularly the seasonal workers. I think they suffer a lot, although attitudes towards them seem to be improving within the last couple of years. To this day, I can't understand why some people are so afraid of those who are different from themselves. As the French say, vive la difference!

[deirdre]

I was lucky enough to have been raised by parents who taught us all people are equal. It never occured to me that it could be any other way. I never heard an adult use the "n" word until I was 19 and then was shocked to my core. Yesterday I heard a woman use that word again as she explained her dismay over Obama's win, and, again I was shocked. But this time I got angry too and told her that what she'd said was offensive and I didn't want to hear it.

We've come so far and still have a long way to go. I believe Obama is the man to lead us there.

[Brenda Kula]

You changed your banner! Today I had a neighbor fetch me from the car dealership for auto repairs. And we stopped by this gardening shop out in the country. In East Texas, many people are in a state of bereavement, it seems. (NOT ME!) These women were bemoaning how they cried so hard when (and they wouldn't say his name) gave his speech after the election. I had just had a cortizone shot for poison ivy and was feeling testy. I said, "Oh, did your candidate not win?" (Clearly, the sign out front said no). "Well, ours did. And we're so happy about it," I said with enthusiasm. I deadened that place fast! I can shake up a place real quick when I want to, Tara! So I'm kicking the poor dead horses all the way in Texas for ya!
Brenda

[Christina]

I sit here in front of my screen, letting your story seep in to me. I feel honored that you shared with us. I am a bit teary eyed because I could almost see the people, you spoke of in your story. I could feel your story. Smell the rolls and potpies. I love that!

I asked you a question a week or so ago, maybe because I was searching for an answer of how I could feel so connected to someone I barely knew. I didn't need the answer, it wouldn't of mattered really. I would still- have respected you and loved you just the same. Wink.

I don't know what I want to say. I think I want to say- it is good to hear parts of your story, to understand a bit of history is to move ahead with our future, right?

I appreciate you, my friend.
Here's to a fresh beginning.

[gillian at indigo blue]

Tara, I am in shock. Of course I have read about all these occurences, and am somewhat up to speed on my history...but you were there. You witnessed it firsthand. My the world has come a long way. You must feel so elated. I know I would. I do!
Oh, and Nader's a jerk, huh?
I am going to have to start a list of questions to ask you, because we only have 24 hours in NYC (in three weeks~!!!) and I want to squeeze your brain of all I can while we are together. There will be wine, and yes, LOTS of convos.
xoxo
Can't wait to meet you! It will be an honour and a privilege.

[jeanie]

This is a great post, and it's fascinating to hear about your background. I was especially touched as you recounted the story of Emma and how she would have been Mrs. Something had she been a white woman. I was fortunate to have parents who -- despite a still nervous sense of racial equality in 1960s Michigan -- felt this was a critical part of being a member of the human race and tolerance wasn't enough -- that implied judgement. But acceptance, that was important. And inclusion. It's why they moved me to an integrated school district from a very white-bread neighborhood and it was the most important thing they ever did for me.

I couldn't help but think on election night that I wished my dad could have seen this. My dad, who was the first to welcome the first African-American family that moved into our neighborhood. When he died, that man -- whom I hadn't seen or heard of in years -- came to the funeral home, just to tell me that. My dad would have been so excited. Maybe he is -- "up there."

[maddie]

b e a u t i f u l

:)

i just love you:)

[pam aries]

Hi Tara! I had to pop over and see you! I am so happy about the election results! I feel happy happy everyday I wake up to Obama as our President to be! THank you for all your information throughout this campaign! As soon as i get settled and have a computer, I'll be back to blogging... Love you! I am leaving for Oregon on Saturday.....

[Leau]

Thank you my friend. From your pen to Barak's ear.. I have so much hope right now. I am trying to let go of all of the animosity that reared it's ugly head during the campaign. I am so proud of how Obama never let that come into his speeches, didn't use against McCain or Palin and kept his head above the fray. I would have voted for him for no other reason. We have lots of healing to do from lots of years of hurtful awful behavior and now I believe we can start. smooches

[Amy]

I'm having a very hard time looking at anyone who states they are a conservative republican as anything other then a biggot or even a racist, especially since Palin (I'm so glad to not see her or hear her grating voice anymore) seemed to cheer on the hate at her rallies. I don't know if that gut feeling will ever go away. Some of these so called Christians have such hatred for mankind, not just race issues, but economic issues as well...referring to the poor as lazy slobs looking for a handout etc... I like the saying walk a mile in my shoes etc...they have no problem funding a war that should not have not been waged in Iraq in the first place, they are for the killing that goes on in war, but are against abortians??? They don't mind funding a war, but can't stand their taxes going for anything that would fund the poor... I'll never understand, but I find it impossible to believe they are truly learning anything Godly. I'm so proud to have obama as our president..I'm so hopeful that he will turn it around here, & do some amazing things for all, and it is truly truly so awesome to see African Americans FINALLY believe that they ARE important, that they are worthy of the highest office & are a vital part of our country..&.best of all, the beauty of our election process is that in 4 years we can vote him out should he not produce....

[Michelle]

I wish I had the command of language to express my thoughts as you do. I tried with a little piece on my own blog.

We had some parallel experiences. In Alabama, my hometown was so off the beaten track that even though one of the most cruel atrocities of the Civil Rights was only a short drive away (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anniston,_Alabama), I grew up completely ignorant of the instance. (BTW, http://www.beyondtheburningbus.com/globalcontent/saying.asp is a book written by Rev. Phil Noble, an acquaintance of mine.)

We were brought up to address adults of either race as Mr. or Miss or Miz first name. (I kinda miss that. I was so impressed recently when a new acquaintance of mine, not from here, asked that I be addressed NOT by my first name by her children.)

While I do prefer to think of George Wallace as the devil incarnate (or as he was later known "The Official Alabama State Vegetable"), he rigged an amazing political machine. (the book "Crazy in Alabama" actually gives a realistic illustration of life in Alabama in the 60s.) Unfortunately, his followers took the rhetoric as gospel.

My own father lost jobs and elections because he wasn't a "Wallace Man."

I was honored to have one of my old classmates, the black girl who towered over me in the 5th grade and scared the daylights out of me, took time to return my call with celebratory texts, well into the wee hours.

Perhaps it helps that our people have come of age. We were thrown together as small children, the first classes who were, and learned to navigate the world together and apart.

But we found out that the party together was much more fun.

[Rosa]

PSS I grew up in Arlington VA and Washington DC in the 60s. I never saw any segregation. In fact, in 1965, my kindergarten teacher was black. As you can imagine, we had every color under the sun in our schools and I am so thankful for that.

[Rosa]

There is so much that hasn't changed here in the south, unfortunately. Way too much racism still exists which makes me ashamed to live here. It was so depressing yesterday when there were no celebrations, no jubilant folks with smiles, instead just a lot of angry people here in Middle Tennessee. I blame a lot on McCain and Palin for riling up this hatred and, to an extent, allowing the racists and bigots to rear their ugly heads once more and probably felt it was actually ok to do so. There is never a time or place where that should be accepted. I will not allow their anger, hatred and ignorance to take away from the excitement that I have as our country can finally move towards a new direction. I pray that this man can change the minds of many as he leads one of the greatest countries on earth. I am very proud of who we elected.
PS Thanks Tara for always keeping us informed on the process. You always educate me on so many levels. xo

[tangobaby]

Tara, as your friend, reading your first-hand accounts of your experiences in childhood and young adulthood makes this tremendous event even more incredible to me now. You grew up in a world shaped in ways that I could not imagine, and now to see things come truly full circle...I am so happy for you.

So the inauguration is the day after MLK Day. What more of a proper and fitting tribute could there be?