Lately the Blackwoman has been spending time with the long-view. Past and present. There is a reason for the saying 'hindsight is 20/20. Not always. Often enough. Those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. Or some such. Not in the mood to repeat it. I've seen enough angry white folk to last a lifetime. Enough angry black folk too. I've fought against becoming angry most of my life. Anger unless used as motivation just renders you useless.
One of the things that puzzles me is how something as simple as having a vision, articulating that vision and investing others in that vision becomes something we are not seeing from those who call ourselves whatever we call ourselves. As far as I can tell most of us want the same things. We likely have a similar idea of what those things are. We all want to be safe, with shelter, good health and the ability to provide for ourselves and our families. We all want equality,justice, peace and prosperity. We need to talk more about the vision we share and less about the mechanics. We actually know what is needed, we seem not to know how to get there.
As someone who has spent most of my life speaking out against the real and institutionalized racism, I recognize a shift in the dynamic requiring vision. A vision. A common vision.
What happens to 'other' if a vision is shared?
Many of us who went through the sixties as a current event were idealist of the highest order. Fed a steady diet of mom, pop and apple pie, we were greatly disturbed to find the flies in the pie. Still are. Disturbed. By the flies.
We got so busy fighting against the 'isms' we forgot to tell those less inclined to notice others, why.
We hit the streets. We fought. Some died. Many thought and still think we were fighting against. We neglected to tell them what we were fighting for. We were fighting for the American Dream. I believe we still are. I just think we need to spend some time talking about it.
For much of the last forty years or so, we have not responded to the business,corporate interests who have deferred the dream for generations and who have done their best to claim the dream and distort it with their appeal to the basest instincts of those whose lives are wretched nightmares and need something or someone to focus their anger at this wretchedness upon. What President Obama did with his campaign of "Hope" and "Change" was offer in his campaign a vision. Some feel betrayed since the vision remains that, a vision. It is nowhere near a reality today. The atmosphere is not clear for much progress. It is clear for a vision of what this country might look like if there were not these two competing visions. The greed is good vs the American Dream. We forget we are the good guys here. We have allowed others to forget.
As Americans we like the idea of being a beacon for freedom,justice and equality. For all. We like the idea of our children being safe,healthy and educated. We all want to know that those of us who will not reach the age of retirement as rich men and women, will have some income however small, to aid us through those years in our lives when what we mostly crave is the security of shelter,care and food. We want to preserve the beauty of this nation and this planet.
As Americans we like to think we are the best. Yet we fall far beneath other industrialized nations in the basics. Our babies die at levels unacceptable in this day of modern medicine. How many Americans know this?
We as Americans lag behind in education and educating. In providing healthcare.
Black men who are imprisoned are healthier than black men who are not.
We, whatever we call ourselves ought to start talking about realities to the so-called 'little guy'. The realities are this. We deserve better than we've gotten so far. When everything we buy is taxed. When our income is taxed and our homes, we have the right to expect something from our government. We have a right to life,liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It is the role of government to insure these rights. Life. Liberty. The pursuit of happiness. Covers everything.
Our Constitution allows. We are being restricted. Lack of money equal lack of influence until and unless we band together and use our vote to dismantle the program of business as usual.
To do this, we might have to suspend wasting energy fighting with each other and focusing on a common goal, a shared vision. Fighting we are disjointed, fractured and ineffective. We may not agree upon how to get there, but I believe we agree on where we would like to go. If so, let us focus on the common dream and find our strength in numbers. If we do this, those issues we support will find support.
Now run and tell that.