An UnCommon Decency – Day 35 – Dealing With The Elementary School Demagogue

Today I remember that kid who fought for the center of attention on the schoolyard or in the classroom.  He seemed to find a way to get everyone's attention.  He would dress outrageously, make attention-seeking noises, get into just enough trouble to hold the teacher's attention, or talk too loudly.  He would create a whirlwind of drama around himself to get everyone talking.  Later on, he drove the most expensive car, or the "baddest" hotrod, etc.  He hooked up with the trophy date and made sure to parade her around the school.  He bragged about being the best and brightest.  His achievements were always a bit more important than anyone else's.  Yep, that kid learned how to capture and hold the focus on himself so that he could never be forgotten or left behind.  He needed to be the center of attention, ALWAYS!

To be fair, not everyone who was the center of attention needed or even wanted to be there.  Some were embarrassed to be the topic in the schoolyard chatter.   For others, the spotlight seemed to seek them out, and they enjoyed their moment of "fame." However, they enjoyed slipping back into anonymity when their time passed.  I am not talking about these folks.  The attention seekers are not to be confused with those who naturally gravitate to the spotlight. 

I am talking those who either believe they deserve the spotlight or crave it so much they find a way to claim it for themselves.  Generally, these kids reveal their need for the class's attention in two ways.  First, they cannot share the spotlight with anyone else.  Second, they cannot give up the spotlight once they get it.

Today, as we prepare to vote in 35 days, I invite you to consider the UnCommon Decency of someone who can enjoy the spotlight when it finds them, sharing it when appropriate, and then moving on when it shines on someone else.   I am also asking you to think about the Common InDecency of someone who seeks and holds the attention on only himself, at all costs.  The former is an Inspirational Center while the latter is a Demagogue. 

Over the last five years, we have become all too familiar with a Demagogue.  This word grew out of a Greek word that described one who leads the common people.  It did not have any negative meaning unless you were an elitist who viewed common folks with disdain.  But in the last few hundred years, the word has acquired a new and darker meaning.  It now refers to someone who appeals to people through their prejudices by making false claims and promises to gain power.  The Demagogue demands and holds his target audience's attention with loud, abusive, untruthful appeals to their racism and fears.  The Demagogue needs the center of attention to fulfill their lust for power over others. One straightforward way to identify a Demagogue is by their deep jealousy of an inspirational leader.  The Demagogue wants to erase the Inspirational Leader's legacy and tear them down with every opportunity.   The Demagogue cannot and will not share the limelight with anyone, especially a rival for the spotlight.

How does the Demagogue get and hold the focus of a nation?

They employ outrageous words or actions.  The Demagogue knows the words they are speaking are untrue or misleading.  But they are not seeking to share the truth.  All they want are the headlines and daily chatter to focus on them.  The actions do not serve the public good or change something for the better.  The Demagogue likely knows, on some level, that what they are doing is not helpful.  It may even be ultimately destructive.   But once again, they are not seeking to build up.  All they want are the daily headlines and coffee shop chatter to be all about them.

Once they get their target group's attention, they hold that attention by provoking and invoking fear or shame or some other powerful negative emotion.  They generally will identify a cadre of "enemies of the people" who want to destroy the American way of life.  The Demagogue seeks to shame those who do not fall in line with name-calling and accusations of disloyalty and betrayal of ideas like patriotism and piety.  They must be relentless in their allegations and threats to hold the headlines and twitter feeds.  The Demagogue does not care about the truth or validity of any of this.  They may even discount all news as "fake news" to discredit those who would try and steal the light of public discourse from them.

The ultimate Attention Seeker is the Demagogue who can capture the attention of a nation and a good part of the world with his lies, rhetoric, outrageous dress, and a constant barrage of media fodder. And, as long as we pay attention, the schoolyard attention seeker will continue his Common InDecency.

So, how can we deal with the Demagogue?  We need to start committing and rewarding UnCommon Decency.

UnCommon Decency begins with turn our backs on the schoolyard Demagogue and focuses our attention on the inspirational leaders among us.  The Demagogue will prevent this from happening.  But it is possible!

Our attention is an act of our will.  It is not under anyone else's control.  They may influence our attention, but we have the choice of where we look and what we hear.  Take charge of your focus.  Turn off the sources that the Demagogue uses to speak to his victims.  Instead, listen for those voices of reason and let your mind and heart gravitate to them.  Unfortunately, the more the Demagogue discovers that people are tuning them out, the louder and more outrageous he will become.  But he still cannot control where you focus your mind and soul.  Make your choices out of others' inspiration rather than the fears and worries that are invoked by the message and actions of the Demagogue.

Turning from the Demagogue will require that we get a grip on our fears so that we can look and listen elsewhere.  The old counseling technique of "name it" and "claim it" can be very helpful.  Do not hide behind the false claim that you are not afraid.  Name your fears.  Claim them as real and then muster the courage to move on anyway.  Fear is a companion in everyone's life.  The mark of growing us is how effectively we respond to our fears.  If we allow them to control us, the fearful will be forever caught in the flock of sheep.  But if we identify and claim our fears, we can set them aside and do what needs to be done for ourselves and others.  This is the essence of courage.  And the Common InDecency of the Demagogue demands a high level of the UnCommon Decency of Courage to move on.

There is a wonderful side effect of changing the focus of your attention away from the Demagogue.  The UnCommon Decency of courage steals your light from the Demagogue and shines it elsewhere, making it easier for others to follow suit.  The more people turn who turn to inspirational leaders will raise that leader's credibility and validity.  Yes, this will provoke the Demagogue.  Yes, a wounded and desperate animal is a dangerous creature.  But we cannot keep feeding it so that it will not eat us.  Instead, we need to focus our attention on an inspirational "dragonslayer" who will help us deal with the Demagogue and move forward.  Courage is contagious.  We need to share it.

Engage in the UnCommon Decency to look away from those who crave and seek the limelight.  Instead, focus on those upon whom that light naturally falls.  Let your hopes and dreams capture your attention and help you focus your energies as you seek out inspirational people to hold your spotlight.  Encourage those around you to move beyond their fears.   Help them see that naming and claiming our fears is not an admission of failure but the path to freedom from the Demagogues threats and lies.  Help them to shift their light onto the Inspirational Leaders as well.

How did the teacher handle that attention seeker in elementary school?  She ignored him until he threw his temper tantrum disrupted the class.  Then she sent him to the Principal's office for discipline.  Life will discipline the Demagogue.  Life finds a way.  Our job is not to feed him with our attention or our votes and get on with growing into the nation we seek to be.

Bob

An Uncommon Decency – Day 41– Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire

Did you have a kid on the playground that was known for their whoppers?  They did not just tell a lie.   They told whoppers, lies so big that no one in their right mind would believe that they were true.  These kids grew into great storytellers, as long as they stayed in touch with the fact that they were not telling the truth.  They told tall tales and people enjoyed listening to them. 

 

However, as soon as the audience got the feeling that the teller believed that what they were saying was true, they crowd would start stepping back.  The more convinced the speaker became that he was telling the truth, the farther back many would step.  But then, something interesting would happen.  Some of the audience would start moving in closer especially if the stories being told confirmed their deeply held biases and prejudices.  In fact, they would start cheering and applauding as the Liar’s pants caught fire.  They would declare that he was brave enough to finally tell the “truth.”

 

Not every whopper-teller from the playground grows into a congenital liar as an adult.  I believe these adult liars are made, not born.  They may start out with a creative imagination, but something happens as they grow into adulthood.  They may retreat into fantasy to escape the reality of a painful childhood.  They may have such deep, inner turmoil that the only coping mechanism that works is denial and creative remembering.  And for some, they may have so little respect for themselves or the people around them that the truth seems to be a waste of time.  The latter is especially true if they have been sheltered from the consequences of their lying.  It becomes even more evident when they are encouraged to tell their lies by others that are important to them.

 

In my experience, almost everyone lies.  We do remember differently and sometimes we are simply wrong.  Other times we fill in the gaps of memory with what could have or should have happened.  Sometimes, our self-interest or ego is so involved that we creatively remember.  This is common and does not really reflect a great deal of indecency.  But, when someone lies, even in the face of evidence to the contrary, they have moved into a whole new realm where disrespect seems to be law of the land.

 

There is a link between respect and truth-telling.  The truth depends on self-respect, respect for the real world, and respect for the listener.  Self-respect acknowledges that we are part of a greater community and honor our place in that network.  We want to be known as a person of their word who is trustworthy.  Without self-respect we feel no incentive to be honest with ourselves or others.  The truth-teller also has respect for the real world.  They recognize that actions have consequences and facts are facts, not opinions.  We honor reality with a healthy respect for its impact on our lives and the lives of others.  A truthful person also honors the relationships they share with people who care about them.  They do not want to disappoint or damage that relationship.  Without a healthy respect for ourselves, the world around us, and the people who share it with us, the need for honesty becomes an inconvenient impediment to fulfilling their desires.  Honesty becomes expendable. 

 

How do we deal with the “flaming britches liars” in our lives?  How do we recover the uncommon decency of truth-telling?

 

First, we need to distinguish between storytelling, everyday sort of lying, and the Pants-on-Fire Liar.  The storyteller does it to entertain and everyone acknowledges that he is lying.  It is the World Wrestling Federation and Reality TV of lying.  The everyday sort of social liar is likely lying to themselves more than folks around them.  It is a very common act and sometimes a way to cope with the ups and downs of life.  But the last category of liar is truly dangerous.  They attract followers and can cause a great deal of damage to others around them.  Ask yourself what kind of liar you are encountering and act accordingly.

 

If it is the storyteller, change the channel or laugh along with them.  If it is the social liar, disregard and chalk it up to human frailty.  If it is the latter speak up and call out the lies. 

 

Resist the gaslighting.  The Pants on Fire Liar wants you to doubt your own mind.  They want you to be powerless to argue with their lies.  They will tell the same lie over and over again.  They will tell big lies that challenge the way you see the world.  Avoid the vortex of lies that swirls around the gaslighter.

 

Next, follow the money.  Who benefits from the lie?   Call them out even if they are not spinning the web of deceit.  They are using it to gain some benefits.  Make sure that you know, those around know, and the one’s benefitting know that you know.  Do not let the liar’s allies go unchecked.

 

Third, withhold any respect for their statements or their trustworthiness.  We do not owe a fair hearing to the big liar.  They do not have a concern for decency or fairness.  They are slashing and burning their way through our lives and tolerating them or giving them a fair hearing only serves their purposes, not the purposes pf civil discourse.  They do not deserve, nor should they receive your attention or toleration of their dangerous lying.

 

Fourth, stay true to yourself.  The power of the gaslight is that it causes us to doubt ourselves.  “Would he say such a thing if it were not true?”  “Maybe I am wrong.  He is the President, after all.”  The gaslighting liar wants power over you and they do so by causing you to doubt your own moral and intellectual foundation.  Do not yield any ground to the one you know is a Pants-on-Fire Liar.  Hold fast against the onslaught, even when others chime in.  Remember, they are gaining something from the lie as well.

 

By the way, this sort of lying is not “politics as usual” or just “part of the game.”  Do not be lulled into believing that it is okay because it is so prevalent or the spinmeisters have tried to diminish its ill-effects.  This sort of lying is never okay and should always be resisted.

 

You owe it to yourself and to those around you to stand your ground against the malicious liar.  Uncommon decency requires that we call out the Big Liar and protect ourselves and those around us from the all-to-common indecency of lying that has become part of our lives in 2020.  Stand firm and resist.  Let it be said that “Nevertheless, she persisted.”

 

Bob

An Uncommon Decency - Day 43 - Dealing with Bullies

Every schoolyard had a bully.  They were just part of the landscape.  They were the older boy who was much larger than the other boys.  He gathered a few “admirers" around him and sought out the less mature or smaller boys.  They would steal their lunch money or terrorize them just because they could.  Or it could be a small clutch of “Mean Girls” who would play cruel games on younger, less connected girls just because they could.  The key to “bullyhood” is that they are cruel and threatening just because they could.  They likely have deeper issues, but they select their victims just because they are smaller or have less support from other kids.  Schoolyard bullies were a fact of life in the schoolyard.  Unfortunately, they have become a fact of life in our political playground of 2020.  Uncommon decency requires that we not tolerate bullying. 

 

It is often believed that bullying is a one-on-one activity between the bully and their victim.  But true bullying always involves a crowd.  The bully will gather a cohort to cheer them on.  We may call this a gang or a group of mean girls.  These admirers will cheer the bully on while adding their own torment to the victim’s distress.  But there are others surrounding the bully.  This is a group of spectators who show up to watch the bully and company at work.  The admirers and spectators play essential roles in the bullying event.  The former takes pride in their “leader” who picks on the different folks and establishes a norm of being just like us.  Ther latter stand by and pretend that it is none of their business while getting a thrill at seeing the weaker, different child being beaten up emotionally and physically.  There is little we can do about the bully.  The key to not tolerating bullying is to “call out” the admirers and spectators.  Without them, the bully will back down and slick away in shame.

 

In 2020, we need an uncommon decency that will not tolerate bullies.  First, we need to look out for the bullied.  The bullied should not be on their own.  Second, we need to be honest enough to not use a bully to intimidate our opponents in order to get our way and defend our views of normal.   Ultimately, we need to gather around the weaker and those less able to defend themselves and hold the bully’s admirers and spectators responsible for their role.  We cannot rely on the “teacher” or other authorities to “fix” the bullying.  We need to look out for one another, speaking up and, if necessary, surrounding the bullied with our protective presence.  In short, we, as a community, need to stand up for the bullied while calling out the cowardice of the bully and their admirers and spectators. 

 

The most effective way to deal with today’s bully is to vote.  Name the bully and their admirers and vote against them.  Call out the spectators that are cheering the bully on and help them see their role in the abuse of the victims by voting against them as well.  Uncommon decency demands no less.

We can also refuse to do business with the buly's allies who cheer him on from the sidelines.  I am not talking simply about a boycott.   We should make sure that their customers are informed of the businesses' support for the indecency of bullying.  Such is the way of an uncommon deacency in 2020.

Uncommon decency does not tolerate bullying in the schoolyard or the public square.  Decent people stand up for those who are suffering.  We do not stand aside and laugh at their misfortune.  Nor does it tolerate bullying, even when it supports our biases and prejudices.   In the next 5 ½ weeks, call out the admirers and spectators who are supporting the Bully in the White House and let them know that you stand for an uncommon decency in the midst of the great indecency of 2020.

 

Bob

An Uncommon Decency - 45 Days to Go

For the next 45 days, I will be sharing my thoughts on what I consider to be the most important issue facing the US Electorate.  A second term for DJT is certainly a major concern and could change the course of our nation, but it is not the primary issue.  The party that holds the majority in the 2016 Senate is also an important concern, but, like the first, it is not the most vital.  A vacancy has occurred on SCOTUS, and the GOP will likely fulfill their long-held goal of stacking the court with oligarch-friendly jurists.  But even this is not the major issue for this election.  No, there is something far more vital to our Republic and the future of our nation.  There is something that, if ignored, will tear apart the very fabric of our society.  Are we going to continue to allow decency to become more and more uncommon in our life together as Americans?   

This happened once before and it took five years of civil war and over 600,000 lives before we began to come back together as a society.  (Some would rightly argue that the healing is not complete after 155 years.)

This latest trend toward indecency in our public life began in1989 when the Senate voted John Tower down for a Cabinet Position.  The campaign against Tower was both vicious and personal.  It included attacks on his character and personal life.  There had always been personal attacks in political debates, but generally, these were understated or left to the newspapers or media.  But with the Tower confirmation hearings, major political leaders openly engaged in brazen character assassination and fostering lies to advance their cause.  There were no political consequences for their misbehavior.  That small event has culminated in the 2016 Presidential Election and the elevation of Trumpism as the standard of operation for a major political party. 

Decency has become very uncommon.   This change was signaled when 45 mocked a man with an obvious disability and was applauded for his honesty.  Indecency has become the rule of the day in all things political.  Lying, ignoring the conventions of civility, and hyper-partisanship are the most obvious signs of this indecency.  But the public display of absolute contempt for the opposition as well as setting aside even the pretension of serving the public good has continued unchallenged.  We live in a period when decency has been set aside for political expediency.  The tone of our relationships with our neighbors and others with whom we disagree has been degraded.

We have become a society that lives out of Trumpian narcissism and a lack of compassion in our everyday relationships.  Our children are picking up on this and taking it back into the schoolyard where it was created.  Sectarianism, faux patriotism, and an empty faith, along with a big dose of being offended by the existence of people different from ourselves have become the norm in 2020 America.  No society can survive when it is tearing itself apart with such indecencies.

Over the next 45 days, I want to give voice to the uncommon decency that we need to recover if we are to long endure as a people.  I invite you to share your comments and observations on this as well.  Engage one another in the comments and on social media.  Let’s initiate a dialogue on the real future of our society.  I encourage you to treat one another with decency and compassion and expect the same out of our political candidates and their minions.  Let us renew the call for uncommon decency in our life together.

Bob

Things I have Learned about Antiracism this Week!

A Forest Path in Seattle - 2018

Things I Have Learned about Antiracism this Week

 

I have had a great week.  I read Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man, by Mary L. Trump, Ph.D., and How To Be an Antiracist, by Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D.  I am reading White Fragility by Robin Di Angelo, Ph.D.  I also watched “Who killed the Neanderthal?” on Curiosity Stream.  Lastly, I did some research on Google that included "How Science and Genetics are Reshaping the Race Debate in the 21st Century" and  "There's No Scientific Basis for Race - It's a Made-up Label."

 

These readings filled me with new learnings.  Some of these discoveries stripped away old ideas.  Others reminded me of ideas that I buried under preoccupations and negligence.  I am grateful for those who have taught me this week, and I look forward to continuing my education next week.   The pandemic is allowing me to explore, experience the challenge, and discover ways to “make a difference” in the world of my children and grandchildren.

 

I offer these things I have learned to encourage you to retrace some of my research and discover for yourself the power and reach of racism and the opportunities that antiracism offers to all of us.

 

Here are a few of the things I have learned this week. 

 

Trump is a dangerous distraction!  We need to deal with this distraction, but that is only a tiny first step!   Voting him out of office is a very near-term task.  But, our problems are far more profound and far more significant for our future than the rantings of a foolish little man.  He is a symptom that we must address.  But he is not the cause of our dis-ease.  We need to put more of our energy at stopping the disease while we treat the symptom.

 

Racism is not what I thought it was!  It is not people waving Confederate flags and wearing white hoods.  They are certainly racists, but they are not the only ones.  Racism is a system of policies that oppress some for the benefit of others.  Racism did not create slavery.  Racism is a by-product of a very profitable slave trade that continues today in ghettos and prisons across our country.  Racists are those who support these policies and use their prejudices to justify their oppression.  In the past, we told ourselves, “They are happier and healthier on the plantation.  Besides, it allows them to get saved by Jesus.”   Today we shrug our shoulders and say, “what can I do? I don’t own any slaves.” 

 

This racism grew out of the mythology of individualistic meritocracy.  It believes that anyone can pull themselves up by their bootstraps.  Our destiny is solely in our own hands.  This idea supports the American fiction that anyone can succeed if they work hard enough.  It is a pernicious myth that helps us to and ease our conscience and explain away the high rates of crime, unemployment, and poverty in communities of People of Color.  We tell ourselves that People of Color are lazy, inherently stupid, and immoral.  These beliefs make it easier to carry our White Privilege.  We do not see ourselves as racists because we do not wear a white hood.  But even without owning any “slaves,” we benefit from the system.   How?  I encourage you to read White Fragility.

 

Racism is not just hating People of Color.  Racism supports a system of oppression against People of Color because it is in our self-interest to do so.  It ties healthcare to employment and cuts public health services to the poor.  Racism withholds policing and other public services to create redlined, segregated neighborhoods.  It supports de facto segregation in public facilities through reducing funding for public education (especially for schools in segregated neighborhoods.)   It limits social interaction between whites and People of Color by fostering fear with stereotypes in entertainment and the daily news.   Self-interest drives us to ignore policies that unequally distribute the benefits of our society.  This is racism at work.

 

In essence, Racism is a perceived difference barbed with a value judgment.  Difference and diversity are healthy as long as they are grounded in mutual respect and celebration of those differences.  But racism perceives a difference and immediately labels it as good or bad.  It declares one group as superior to the other.  It looks for reasons to justify those value judgments. It relies heavily on non-scientific observations and criteria supported by carefully selected anecdotes that grow out of our implicit biases and prejudices.   Racism takes the non-scientific and socially created category of race and elevates it to a statement of relative value among Whites and People of Color.  They are bad.  We, the Whites, are good.

 

There is no such thing as a biological race.   There are species and sub-species. The five races of humanity do not qualify as sub-species.  People outside of Africa cannot even call themselves pure Homo Sapiens since we have roughly 2% of our genetics from a different species, the Neanderthals.  Ironically, the only people pure Homo Sapiens alive today in Africa.  Biology is not an ally of racism.

 

I am a White Supremacist.  This leaning is the most painful for me.   I grew up being taught and socialized into believing that being white is not only better than being a Person of Color but being white is the norm for all human beings.   I grew up during the desegregation of public schools.  I remember when the Latinx and Black children started coming to our white schools.  They did not send white children to black or Latinx schools.  These “substandard schools” were closed. The school boards chose not to invest any more money in schools in the wrong part of town. I have learned that assimilation flows one way, from the People of Color to the norm, White people.  

 

My generation believed that the way you get rid of racism was by assimilating others into the “American Dream.”  Unfortunately, that dream was a white dream that required that others give up much of themselves and their identity.  They needed to become “more white” so that they could compete in a white world.  There was never any real thought of changing the world to accommodate “them” in “our” world.  In the town where I grew up, the population was mostly Latinx.  But culturally, we were dominated by “whiteness.”  We may have removed the “Whites Only” signs from the drinking fountains around the Courthouse, but People of Color were denied the vote due to Jim Crow laws.  To vote, you had to learn English, pass a citizenship test, and pay a Poll Tax.  That was called assimilation.  People of Color had to “pass” as white and fit into our White community.  The support for policies that enforce the idea that White is the norm to which People of Color must conform is racism.  Whenever we label white as the norm and People of Color as bad, we are showing our White Supremacy. 

 

Racism is Our Problem.  I grew up thinking that racism was a Black or Latinx or Asian problem.  The “minorities had to fix it by protesting and changing laws to erase the policies that supported it.  It was as if to say, People of Color caused racism by being different, and they had to fix it.  But, in the last week, I have been reminded that racism hurts our entire world, and I mean the whole world.  Racism destroys individuals, families, communities, societies, rain forests, oceans, and air.  When we worship at the altar of self-interest, we destroy those things and people that stand in our way of making a profit.  Human rights, the rule of law, protecting the natural world, and defending the role of science when it teaches us inconvenient truths have fallen victim to our greed.   Property Tax cuts that benefit the wealthy brutalize the poor.  The income tax burden has shifted to those who have the least to spare and reap the smallest benefit from them.  Whites created Racism out of greed.  Racism continues because Whites believe it serves our self-interest.  People of Color may carry a greater burden for racism, but it is our responsibility to address it.  Unfortunately, we racists are too preoccupied with loving ourselves to think about the consequences of our actions (or inactions) on others.

 

My goal is to become anti-racist, not a non-racist.  Racism is like a virus that was introduced to North America when the first slave ships of the Dutch West India Company and the British East India Company arrived on our shores as part of the sugar-rum-slaves trade agreements in the 17^th century.  Like any virus, it has proven quite adaptable as the times changed.  It has spread from generation to generation.  Slavery yielded to segregation following the Civil War.  Segregation gave way to assimilation following the Supreme Court rulings in the 1950s and the Civil Rights legislation of the 1960s.  In the 1970s and 1980s, we used an insidious cultural appropriation that allowed racism to hide beneath the “coolness of our afro” or using (or rather misusing) “rap and hip hop” to prove out non-racist credentials.   Racism continues to hide behind the cultural fads and linger along the edges of being a non-racism.   Those who would not go along with these subtle mutations of racism were kicked out of the “Kool Kids Klub” of progressivism.  All the while, racism erodes the place and dignity of People of Color.  Assimilation is racism as long as it only points in one direction, toward assimilation into white institutions and communities.  It maintains whiteness as the norm.  This is racism.  It is different only in kind from the racism that justified the transportation of Africans on the slave ships of the 1600s.

 

A New Generation of scholars have a better idea.   There is a new generation of people who are pointing us beyond racism and assimilation.  They are leading us to and beyond what we called multiculturalism 30 years ago.  These people are doctoral students and graduates of multi-discipline social science programs, liberal arts programs, and fine arts universities across North America.  Many are calling on our culture see recognize that antiracism is far different than non–racism.   

 

Antiracism changes the policies that label differences between groups of people and then assigns a relative value of those people based on those distinctions.  Antiracism calls for a society that values people over profit and seeks to make our world safe and life-sustaining for all people.  But antiracism is not about our intentions for a better world.   It is about what we are doing to foster that change in racist policies.  Antiracists learn about and grow through their racism.  They help others understand just how adaptable racism can be so that they can begin to lean away from it in their lives.  The antiracist works to create power structures that will change the game.  They foster a society that moves away from individualistic meritocracy.  They celebrate the essential value of every human being.  Antiracism is about making the promise of the Enlightenment into the reality of the third millennium, namely life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all people.  All means all.  The antiracist does not rest until all are living in this new world.  We have a new generation of scholars who are leading the way beyond slavery, segregation, assimilation, and cultural appropriation and to-cool-for-school progressivism.  This new generation does have a better way, antiracism.

 

Becoming an antiracist society will change a lot of other sins as well.  If we become antiracist, we will have a smoother road to becoming anti-ageists, antisexists, and allies for LGBTQI (yes, I learned that there is another letter on that one, intersex.)  Antiracism offers a way of seeing our neighbors and the strangers around us as companions, not competitors.  It will help us find better ways to deal with our fears and avoid unfair discrimination against those who are different from ourselves.   Antiracism will help us discover and address our complicity in their oppression.  It creates a pathway that we can walk to embrace those who challenge our world view and our deepest beliefs.  As long as we give in to our self-interest and rely on our biases and prejudices against those who are different from ourselves, our world will become less and less able to sustain life itself.  Antiracism will allow us to choose life over death for the whole human community.

 

Finally, I have learned that there is a place for me in this journey.  I can become an antiracist.  Everyone will need to bring their skills, interests, and energy to this task.  The following are a few of the things that I, and we, can do to live into becoming an antiracist.

 

As I have written before, first, I need to recognize my racism and do my best to root out those places where it still infects my daily life. Along with this, I need to let go of the idea that I will ever be a non-racist.  Racism is a part of who I am, but I do not have to let it determine how I live my life.  See "The Soul Cancer of Prejudice" blog at Spiritual Health Associates.

 

I need to amplify the voice of those who are most directly affected by racism.  There are many voices out there who can help me and those around me gain a deeper and more meaningful appreciation for racism.  Their voices may not reach the ears of many of the other white men and women who are wrestling with these same demons.  I can and will broadcast this new generation’s voice on social media, through my writing, through daily conversations, and in personal encounters.

 

I need to keep learning, growing, and challenging myself.   I am a work-in-progress where I measure success against where I sat yesterday rather than how close I am to tomorrow.  There are new voices to discover and new ideas to be evaluated and weighed for relevance.  There is more darkness in my own life to be revealed by the light of new insights and learnings.  There are new companions and dialogue partners to discover around me.  There are new opportunities to embrace and quite a few unknown and unjust biases and prejudices to uncover and address.  The road will begin each day with an honest assessment of where I was yesterday.  Each day will end with gratitude for those who have helped me see a better path for tomorrow.

 

However, sometimes I need to look back with new eyes if I am to move forward with new energy.  A light appeared in my life many years ago, but I was blind to its wisdom.  While serving a remarkable community in Toronto in the 1980s and early 1990s, I had the opportunity to see multiculturalism in real life.  While racism still existed, there was a commitment by most of that community to receiving and celebrating the gifts that each person brought.  There was an honest effort at recognizing and respecting each person for who they were, regardless of their nationality, skin color, education level, and economic status.  At the time, I was dazzled by this community. I did not appreciate what it took to sustain them.  As I look back with new eyes and insights, I am coming to see the genius that was at work in that small community.  My racism veiled my eyes to what that community had to teach.  But antiracism allows looking back and beyond the self-interest and self-centeredness that fogged my body-mind-soul at the time.  I am learning to cherish the years I spent as part of Hillcrest Christian Church in the heart of Toronto in new ways.  Those precious people have much to teach me now that I am ready to learn.

 

In July of 2020, I am planting only one acorn.  Millions more need to be planted in the next decade.  Each of us needs to do our part.  We do so with the hope that our children will see the trees take root in the soul of America.  We look for the day when our grandchildren will be able to enjoy the forest, and our great-grandchildren will live new lives in a land of abundance where justice and mercy walk hand and hand.  We are sowing the seeds of a new world, but they will need our tears, our tender care, our courageous protection, and our patience for them to grow into a new creation.  Let us pledge our open hearts, our open minds, and our open hands to the wondrous tasks that await us on the road to that new horizon.

 

Blessings,

Bob

Speaking the Inconvenient Truth

Fall in Colorado

Speaking the Inconvenient Truth

The phrase “inconvenient truth” was made part of the public language in 2007 when Al Gore published a book by that name to warn the public about global warming.  But is has been part of our lives since we first began to communicate with other hunters and gatherers.  I would imagine that is was hard for “Rock” to tell the tribe that the red berries they had been eating all Summer were the reason for their being tired and unable to hunt.  It was very difficult for Galileo to stand up to the Roman Catholic Church and declare that the Sun, not the earth was the center of the solar system.  It was difficult for the South to come to terms with the immorality of holding people in slavery.  It was hard for the German people to admit that the promises of Adolf Hitler were only a cover for a far more sinister future.  The inconvenience factor of truth is one signs that we need to pay attention to and heed its warnings.  In this blog I will explore the role that inconvenient truths play in our lives. 

When I was in Seminary an Old Testament Professor of mine asked his class a simple question.  “How do we know if a person is a prophet or not?”  The class of “theological toddlers” came up with all kinds of convoluted ways to discern the true prophet from the false prophet.  Some involved biblical tests of purity while others engaged in some strange mixture of clairvoyance and mysticism.  After the class spent a good deal of time arguing and fantasizing about the issues, Dr. Stewart cleared his throat.  This never failed to bring the discussion to a stop.  All ears were prepared for a booming pronouncement of truth.  Instead, the Prof offered a little smile and gently spoke, saying, “You can tell if someone is a prophet if what they say comes true.”  We sat in stunned silence. 

I suggest that we can use a person’s willingness to declare an inconvenient truth as a sign that they might be a prophet.  We can only know for sure if the inconvenient truth becomes an inconvenient fact!  The sweep of human history has been blessed by quite a few people who were willing to announce inconvenient truths.  A few have turned out to be prophets, people who speak for something greater than themselves and beyond their own tiny view of the world.  They announce a truth that is hidden beneath centuries of prejudice, socially accepted assumptions, and self-serving beliefs.  In the short-term we cannot tell the prophet from the charlatan.  But in the next few paragraphs I hope to share some thoughts on ways that we can better understand inconvenient truths and discern, as best we can, those who speak them and those who speak of something less than the truth.

What is an inconvenient truth?

I want to be clear what I mean by the phrase “inconvenient truth.”  Separately the words are commonly used and are, for the most part, easily accepted.  But when we put them together, problems arise.  I want to deal with these as individual words first. Then, I will try and define the phrase when the two words come together.

Inconvenient is, according to Merriam-Webster, an adjective that is “not convenient, especially in giving trouble or annoyance.”  According to the Oxford Dictionary, inconvenient is an adjective that causes trouble, difficulties, or discomfort.  The word is traced back to the Latin for not agreeing or fitting in.

We use the adjective to communicate our discomfort with something.  If a neighbor asks to come over for a cup of coffee and the house is a mess, we simply say that a visit would be inconvenient rather than saying, “I’m a slob and I do not want you to see just how dirty my house really is.”   If we read that a cold front will be coming through and mess up our weekend plans, we will likely change the plans while resenting just how inconvenient this “weather thing” can be.   When we get sick and have to stay in bed rather than be up and about, we may become upset at the unfairness and inconvenience of illness.  When the annoying becomes the troublesome, difficult, or discomforting, our anger and/or denial become more apparent.  As the “temperature” of our response rises, so does our voice in expressing our displeasure.  Inconvenience is simply part of a life that has to make adjustments to other people and experiences.  We may not like the word, but we can generally accept it and use it to describe our experience.  This is not so easily said for the word “truth.”

Western civilization has struggled to accept truth for what it is.  Truth has been a popular topic of philosophical debate since the earliest days of human interaction.  Truth is supposed to make communication more trustworthy.  It should make communication a more reliable way of understanding reality. 

Merriam-Webster Dictionary has four different definitions of truth.  Within those four definitions there are eleven different connotations.  The first definition refers to truth as the body of real things, events, and facts (Actuality);  the state of being the case (Fact); and a transcendent fundamental or spiritual reality.  A second definition says that truth is a judgment, proposition, or idea that is true or accepted as true.  A third defines truth as the body of true statement and proposition.  One connotation states that truth  is a property (or statement) of being in accord with fact or reality, fidelity to an original or to a standard.  Another connotation suggests that truth is sincerity in action, character, and utterance.  Truth derives from the Middle English word (treowth) meaning fidelity or faithfulness.  This old word is best known in the word “troth” from the Book of Common Prayer wedding ritual where the couple plights (or pledges) their “troth” (or faithfulness) before the community.

To say the least, truth is a much more complicated word that inconvenient.  Yet, it is essential to the human enterprise.  Real communication, and thus society itself, depends on people agreeing on the answer to Pilate’s question, “What is truth?”  I doubt we will ever arrive at a single definition.  But for the purposes of this blog, I want to suggest some straight forward ways of understanding the word truth.

First, truth is about the real and actual in our world.  Truth is a noun, it is a real thing not a made up or pretend “something.”  Our perception of the real or actual may vary based on our physical senses, our mind’s understanding, and our soul’s desires.  But the accuracy or inaccuracy of our perception does not alter the truth itself.  There are things that are so clouded by our perceptions, that we cannot call them truth.  We call these statements of faith or mysteries.  These are valuable, in themselves, but they are not truth as I am referring to it in this blog.  Truth is a thing that exists as part of the real or actual world and is not subject to opinion or perception for reality.

Second, truth is knowable only to the extent that our perceptions are aligned with the way that others see and perceive the world.  Truth, as an operative word, works only within a social context.  Operatively, we can function with truth as long as people are honest about the limits of their perceptions and are able to live in dialogue with others who are also honest about the limits of their perceptions as well.  Truth is that middle ground where we agree that what we are seeing is real after excluding self-deception based on self-interest, etc. 

Finally, to declare something to be true is, and should be, an act of deep humility, acknowledging that we may be in error.  I quote my favorite 20^th Century philosopher on truth. Mr. Monk said repeatedly, “I may be wrong, but I don’t think so.”  The ancient truth-speakers (real prophets) were generally slow to speak because they felt the weight of the truth weighing down upon their mind and soul.  The charlatan Court Prophets were always eager to speak and say whatever their sovereign required of them.   Truth is more often announced in whispers than it is in headlines.

What is an inconvenient truth?  When a whispered truth causes our lives to protest and resist, we have encountered an inconvenient truth.  When a quietly spoken word causes our hearts to sink and our minds to yield, we may have heard an inconvenient truth.  When the powers at be who have much to lose because of a whispered word “declare war against it, we may have met an inconvenient truth.  The inconvenient truth is a glimpse of reality that breaks through our wants and desires, our myths and mental foolery, and reveals that which is uncomfortable, unwanted, and undeniably true.

The Prophetic Voice and the Inconvenient Truth

There is an important correlation between an inconvenient truth and the notion of prophet in our society.  Some call themselves a prophet because they believe it gives an aura of authority to their words.  But the speaker does not give authority to the words.  The words that give authority and power to the speaker.  It is important that we learn to distinguish between the speaker and the inconvenient truth that is spoken.

The prophet is not responsible for the inconvenience of the truth that is spoken.  The prophet is only responsible for being faithful to that word.  If the words are spoken in bad faith, then the speaker can and should be ignored.  How can we know if a speaker is being faithful?  Here are few things to consider.

Is the speaker credible?  Does the speaker have training, experience, special knowledge and/or a community that holds them accountable for their words?  As we say in the South, does the one speaking “have a dog in the hunt” or are they serving a more objective purpose?   Does the one announcing an inconvenient truth speak out of conviction or an evident self-serving need?

Is the speaker clear and focused?  Truth, inconvenient or otherwise, is seldom a broad generalization that wraps around our lives like a giant amoeba.  Truth is generally a narrowly focused, perhaps much-qualified, but stated in clear, non-technical language.  The prophet is generally a person of few words, but enough words to get the truth across.  The most commonly understood inconvenient truth is that the increasing rate of global warming is the result of human choices made over the last 100 150 years.  Note the qualifiers (“rate of” and “100 -150 years”).  Note also that there is no discussion of the difference between climate and weather.  This statement is, in essence, the inconvenient truth that has been spoken by a vast majority of weather scientist for over two decades.  The words are clear and focused.

The truth, not the speaker, is the center of attention.  Too often, the speaker upstages the truth being spoken.  We can feel confident that a person is speaking an inconvenient truth when the focus is on the word being spoken and not on the personality of the speaker.  There is no value to showmanship when offering an inconvenient truth.  The truth itself must be able to affirm itself and convince the listener.  Many will try and speak this truth, but very few will succeed because they do not want to stand behind the truth.  They want to be out front where they can be applauded for their courage or wisdom.  Inconvenient truth does not need a “sideshow hawker” to boost its validity.  It speaks for itself from the center of the stage.

A prophet is interchangeable and replaceable, the truth is not.  As history has shown, prophets seldom profit from their words.  Many will die at any early age.  Others will fade into the pages of history.  Many will be silenced and leave only their words behind.  Speaking inconvenient truths is not a career choice.  There is no such thing as a genuine, professional prophet.  The world raises up those who can speak the truth in times of need.  Once the truth is offered it takes on a life of its own and the original voice may be lost.  Can you name the person who first offered the truth of global warming?  Few of us can but we know their words.  Truth does not depend on a personality to carry it into the public conversation?  Once spoken it will do so on its own. 

A prophet is a servant of the word and the word of a servant.  These are two ideas that get lost in the public square.  A truth speaker allows the truth to shape them and their words.  They feel the need to honor the truth they speak with careful word selection and setting it in a context that does not detract from it.  All that they do and say is in service of getting the word out into the public marketplace of ideas.  When they are faithful to the word, they can rest assured that the word they speak will be received as a word of a servant, not someone who is manipulating and using the word for other purposes.  There is an integrity to truth-speaking that makes all the difference.

A final word about the truth speaker.  Occasionally a truth speaker arises that lingers in the public mind.   Generally, they are remembered because of their courage and sacrifice to the word they spoke.  This is okay.  But we should never separate them from the words they spoke.  A memorial should never be a simple image of the person.  The words they spoke should be inscribed in the same rock from which the person was sculpted.   The spoken truth will remain long after prophet has been forgotten.  To remember both is okay.  But, when we remember the prophet and forget the word, we have dishonored both!

How should we receive the inconvenient truth?

What follows are a few observations on the relationship between the inconvenient truth and the hearer. 

Whenever we hear someone offer a dire warning for our society, we need to harbor  a healthy skepticism.  Why?  Because the truth can take it being examined but lies and deceit will be devoured in the fires of the skeptic.  All truths need to be tested in the fires of reality.  This is just as true of religious knowledge as it is of scientific insights.  We do not have to be cynical about other’s motives or disrespectful of their beliefs.  We do not have to muster hatred, anger, or bitterness in order to be skeptical of someone and their words.  We do not have to judge them to be fools or demons in order to disagree with them.  However, we do need to test their words in our and other’s experiences. 

Do they pass the smell test?  Are their words “hooking” a known bias of mine and creating a purely emotional response?  Do I have sufficient distance from the spoken truth to be able to assess its fairness and accuracy?  Am I willing to sit down with the speaker and others to weigh and test the conclusions?  The hearer of the inconvenient truth bears the burden of proof for accepting or denying its validity, but only for themselves.  An unthinking, untested acceptance of or denial of an inconvenient truth will not serve us well as an individual or as a society. 

However, once we have come to believe that there is truth behind the inconvenience, we need to take it seriously.  If is bears up under the weight of scrutiny, then it should compel us to act.  But the energy to act should come from the truth itself, not from its main proponent or the cheerleaders that champion it in the media.  We do not support an inconvenient truth in order to belong to the group or pay our dues to the club.  If the truth, itself, does not motivate you to take action you may need to spend more time listening or move on to something else.  The truth will move us to act.  It has that power once we are open to and accepting of it.

Many of the positive movements for change in western culture began as an inconvenient truth.  Abraham spoke of monotheism and became the founder of three great religious traditions on earth.  Greek democracy continues to echo in Western culture from a voice spoken in the face of ancient oligarchy.  The idea of the earth revolving around a star established an observational science as opposed to a revealed, biblical view of science.  The elevation of the dignity of the individual challenged a  medieval world of Lords and Serfs.  The voice that proclaimed that human rights apply to all people continues to echo in every society on earth who seeks to protect them.  Each of these inconvenient truths has ground and polished a new facet on the diamond of human culture.  They have served as words of promise and words of warning.  We ignore them at our own detriment.

What does an inconvenient truth offer us?

The inconvenient truth has the power to hold a mirror up to ourselves and our society.  The reactions they cause in society, reveals much about our values and the things we hold to be of ultimate importance.  To deny the human influence on global warming betrays a valuing of the present over the future, the needs of the few over the needs of the many.  The inconvenient truth of racism in our culture and the resistance that many have to its very existence shows our society to be more concerned for maintaining privilege and position for the majority at the expense of the minority, the strong over the weak.  Inconvenient truths can teach much about who we are and the values that truly operate in our lives.  By comparing these learnings to our words and stated intentions, we can uncover the changes that are necessary for our future growth and development as a people.

By allowing ourselves to be shaped by the inconvenient truths that have proven themselves in our lives, we are able to see through the gaslighting that tempts us to deny the reality of truth itself.   Inconvenient truths can become the polar star that enables us to steer our lives together toward something that greater than we are.  Inconvenient truths have the power to strengthen our resolve and help us discover new ways to continue the human journey into a place of even greater abundance for all people.  Empowered by truth, we can move toward broader freedom for all humanity.

Ultimately, inconvenient truths can lead us to a clearer perspective of ourselves and a deeper appreciation for what we do not yet know, the mysteries in life.  In these mysteries we will find the keys that will unlock the future that awaits us as a species.

How can we best prepare ourselves to hear them?

If inconvenient truths are so important to our present and future lives, what can we do to more fully appreciate and make them part of our lives as individuals and as a community?

First, we have to grow up.  When we were little we thought like a child and acted like a child.   We were the center of our universe.  We wanted our wishes to be enough to get what we wanted.  We had no time for waiting and demanded that every whim be granted.  But when we grow-up we must put away some of the things from our childhood.  We are not the center of universe. We do not get our way just by demanding and wishing.  Neverland is not a place.  Believing is not the same as reality.  Belief cannot change reality, but it can shape our perception of it.  If we are to grow into the full measure of humanity, we must put away the things of childhood and learn to accept inconvenient truths.

Second, we must challenge, and if necessary, change deeply held beliefs that will enable us to better understand and bring meaning to our lives.  When an inconvenient truth shows us something unfavorable about ourselves, we must discover ways to embrace those learnings and incorporate them into our lives.  When they expose us to the mysteries, may we grow through and into the person that is inside, groaning to see the light of a new day.

Let us listen carefully, discern the prophetic voice, and respect the future as much as you respect the past and present.  The inconvenient truths have to power to help us do these things and more.  The inconvenient truth is a gift from life itself.  It offers much to those who are groaning into becoming a new creation.

Shalom,

Bob