I just got a phone call from my ex asking if I had discussed the election and what this means for our country w/ our kids.
I said, "of course!" we have been talking about this day for weeks (okay, I've been talking about it for months) and we went through the ballet together, then last night we watched the returns and cheered when the news was announced.
Then she told me that she was worried that the kids might not be prepared for what may come.
You see, our 2 oldest kids (14 & 17) are mixed race. Their father is black and their mother (my ex) is white.
We met when the kids were quite small, and I have been their father since.
We live in a rural area of the Pac NW in a town that has a population of less than 1000. There is a strong republican bias shown by many here and many of them are quite vocal.
My wife works in a small country store with the standard group of old-timers that show up every morning for coffee and BS sessions. She has known many of these coots since she was a child, and they know her parents and her kids.
Here is where my blood begins to boil.....
Upon opening this morning, she began to see the regulars showing up like any other day and the REAL side of some of these neighbors came out. The discussion turned to the changes that have led to the election of a man of mixed race. A few began to make wistful remarks about the old days, when "THEY" knew their place.
She was floored!!!
These fools felt it was acceptable to spew this racist bullsh1t, and none of their "buddies" called them on it.
A few more comments were made and her coworker informed her that she would help and arrange for bail if a more aggressive correction was needed.
Well, she made a point of educating them, and that was the end of this mornings coffee clatch.
So....a new day is here, but there are those among us who pine for "the good old days". They were wrong yesterday, they are wrong today, and they will be wrong tommorrow. It falls upon all of us to make sure that these people don't feel comfortable spouting racist garbage anywhere...
it takes a village to reeducate an bigot.