The American South - Progress & Disappointment Regarding Race

[TornadoTN]

While this might be better suited in the Tennessee forum, I believe it crosses over into national territory.

As most of you are aware, we are involved in a very heated and tight Senate race here in Tennessee. Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. and former Chattanooga Mayor Bob Corker are facing off against each other in a race that may well decide the balance of power in the United State Senate, thus possibly changing the direction of this nation from our current course. While Ford is not a favorite among most of us here, I am a dedicated supporter and truly feel that he is what we need right now to represent our state in the Senate. At this point, most polls both candidates in a virtual dead heat - which will most likely continue up until election day - ensuring most of us will be very tired and exhausted, yet dedicated, when the day comes. To say that Ford is doing well is a testament to the political climate of the nation and to the candidate himself, but beyond that, it may very well show that this country, particularly the South, is moving progressively into the 21st and healing some of its wounds and correcting its reputation from the years past in the area of race relations. African Americans and White Americans alike are standing side by and side for this candidate and finding that they are truly not that much different after all. We are all brothers and sisters in this country regardless of race and we are all responsible for the path our nation takes in the future. We are all being affected by the current leadership of this country, some more than others, but for the first time in generations, African Americans and White Americans, share common ground in that they both feel like they are being left behind by the elite and the powerful in the government. The opportunity to elect Harold Ford, Jr. to the Senate would set a standard for the rest of the country to follow - we will have popularly elected the first African American to the U.S. Senate from the South since Reconstruction. No small feat considering our not so proud past. In this sense, I am proud of my state and proud of my country. Have we started turning the corner in this country where the color lines are being blurred and forgotten? Perhaps not yet, but there is a lot of hope. I have never felt more solidarity with the African American community than I do today. Perhaps I should feel ashamed that it took this long for me to feel this way, but there has always been some air of separation when it comes to politics and social issues between White American and Black America. But today we face issues that bridge that gap, issues that if we take a stand now could start the tide of change in race relations in this country today.

Having said this, we still have a lot of work to do and there are a lot of obstacles in our way. Just today, I stopped to put gas in my car on my lunch hour. There I was, dressed in a suit, standing by my car which has two very prominent Harold Ford, Jr. campaign stickers attached, when a white man, around 50 or so, approached me with a young child in tow. He was belligerent or rude, but he plainly said, "I want to ask you something, son". I replied, "Yes, sir, how can I help you?". He said, "How could you vote for a black man? They only think about themselves.". I was floored because I had been thinking about how much progress we have been making here. I collected myself and looked him straight in the eye and asked, "What year is it, sir?" He answered me and I said, "That's why I'm voting for a black man as you call him, but I prefer to call him what he is: A Man, because its time to move out of the past and into the future. This isn't about race, its about electing a man that will represent all Tennesseans and do what's right for the people of this state and our country." He nodded his head and I asked him, "Are you voting for Corker?", to which he said he was and life-long Republican. I asked him "How could you vote for a man that doesn't care about blacks or whites, but only his corporate interests? Do you think this country is on the right path today?". We continued to chat and it became clear that neither of us were going to change the other's mind at that gas pump. I shook his hand and asked him to think about this election and do what he thought was right for this country. He said he would and we parted ways but not after I gave him my card and told him to get in touch with me if he had any questions, regardless of what they may be.

I realize that some old habits and stereotypes will never die, but truly believe this man knows that whats going in our country is wrong and we are certainly headed down the wrong path. But somehow the skin color of a candidate negates your better sense and causes you to work against your own best interests. I grew up in a moderate household that taught me to look at people's character rather than their appearance or color, so this concept of racism is so foreign and so wrong to me that I have a hard time fathoming the thought process. The look in his eyes was that of confusion and a struggle within himself to break those chains that hold that misguided ideology in his head. While it is disappointing to hear those sentiments, it is the look in the eyes of that same man that give me hope that our state and our country has hope yet. The mere fact that he came to me and asked that question was enough of a cry for help, a cry for guidance, for information, to make me believe that the time has come for us to rally around each other and retake our nation.

Now, more than ever, we need to reach out to each other and combine our efforts to rid this great nation of misconceptions and stereotypes. Now, more than ever, we have so much common ground and so much potential to effect positive change in this country, that to sit back and rest on our laurels in our own communities is a disservice to all mankind. Please get out there and help make a difference - tell people about your thoughts, your beliefs and relate to them as people. Together, we can make a difference, bridge the gap between black and white, heal old wounds and progress forward into a brighter, more secure future.

[tnlefty]

1. This isn't being ignored.

I just need some more time to collect my thoughts. In my county 4 yrs. ago we had a candidate who was much more qualified that the incumbent in the sheriff's race - he worked his way up through the ranks, continued taking courses and learning as he went along, and he was much more intelligent, qualified and people that I came in contact with about this gentleman weren't as subdued as the man that you encountered. I was point blank told by many idjits that none of that mattered and then they proceeded to use the "n" word!

I have a dear friend who moved here from CO. She spent a couple of years here before she moved back to CO, and she asked me about race one night while we were sitting on my back deck. She couldn't understand why the African American (some within my county party refuse to be called African American, and who prefer to be referred to as black - I'm usually confused), community seemed unwilling to participate in local rallies, etc. She couldn't comprehend that folks would distrust me (as she laughed and stated that 'you're one of the least bigoted people I've ever met). She then asked if the suspicion (her word) bothered me and I honestly answered that yes, it does bother me, but I also understand it as best I can. I have to continue to build bridges, and I know that I have much more in common with the black community than I do with the racist, white, elitists that are trying to do us all in and that I've known for years that standing up for truth, justice, equality, peace, good education for our children, a lots of other issues I have in common more with the black community than I have with members of my race.

She was still dumbfounded and I had to explain that in the course of history it really hasn't been that long since black men were hung from the Walnut St. bridge in Chattanooga.

Do I like the suspicion - no! Do I understand it - as much as I'm able to. Do I try to fight against racism - you bet!

Might post more on this later, as these aren't all of my thoughts or experiences on this issue. It would be a great day to be able to see all as peers, without divisions, but I'm not sure as to how to get there. "By the content of their character" is what I try to live by.

Yes, we still have a long way to go!