The Fallout, 4

I really hate writing about race but I have been hearing things lately that cause me concern, Gentle Reader. Sunday I heard a radio broadcast, the Tapestry program on CBC Radio One, our own public broadcaster, and this program deals with matters of religion, spirituality, ethics, and community. Often thought-provoking, sometimes just annoying. They were playing an interview with a very angry and hostile African-American activist. Actually she isn't even properly African, being half-white, but nobody's perfect. She was repeating the angry and hateful garbage that has been coming out of the whole Black Lives Matter movement, which I find to be almost as objectionable as the irrational sewage coming out of the white supremists of the Alt Right morons. I for one am getting sick and tired of being demonized for being white. For the record, I don't even notice my race, and I don't care, because race for me is irrelevant. I am fortunate that I have not had to live with a lot of racism (I have been subjected to some racist treatment by certain Asians, Blacks, Latinos and Aboriginals, but those have been quite rare incidents) This angry woman on the program seems to believe that simply being white makes you an evil racist and she proceeded to spout nonsense that we have no choice over what kind of people we turn into, that we are all helpless pawns of our environment and upbringing. Her thinking is clearly black and white (pun partially intended), and she is simply doing with white people what white supremists do with people of colour. I am sick to death of this nonsense that having lived with centuries of so-called White Privilege makes for a different dynamic, and that by extension there is no such thing as a black racist, that racism is only the purview of white people. What a bunch of specious and absolute rubbish!!!!! I have already addressed the theme of White Privilege, and I agree that it exists, but it is primarily the privilege of people of British backgrounds who enjoy upper middle class status. Otherwise, could someone here please explain the existence of predominantly Caucasian beggars and homeless on our streets? And aboriginals? Very few blacks and almost no Asians or South Asians or Latinos. Until you can satisfactorily answer this, then please stop boring me with your sweeping generalizations about race. No, we have not got to where we need to. Yes, there is still a lot of racism in society. Yes, a lot of our law enforcement officers are racist and mouth-breathing Neanderthals (I don't wish to insult Neanderthals), and yes, people of colour, especially of African heritage have been and still are horribly traumatized. By the same token, stop hating me for being white. This makes you no better than the white supremist mouth-breathers. Stop seeing race, and until you are able to do this, then I am afraid that this conversation is going nowhere. Start looking at persons, as individuals created in the image of God. Imagine that the human soul has no skin colour. Next time you try to persuade us about the over-representation of people of colour in our penal and justice systems please consider this little elephant in the room: social and economic disadvantage breeds the conditions of crime and criminal behaviour. People of colour, because of the unjust legislated poverty that many have been stranded in over the generations are also more susceptible to crime because of the stigma of inherited poverty. This isn't the only reason why they are over-represented in the criminal justice system, of course, and yes, police, judges and juries tend to be very unfairly selective when it comes to the skin colour of the offender. All those things need to be addressed. But, please, we don't need a race war. Please try to temper your rage with commonsense, compassion and reason. Hate is simply going to get us nowhere. We have to start working more on ourselves and to learn how to love one another. For black mentors, how about Martin Luther King? Barak Obama? Nelson Mandela? Archbishop Desmond Tutu? Seriously!!!!