In today’s society, how can we engage openly in dialogues about ‘race’ and/or ‘racism?
I grew up in Avon Lake, Oh a west side suburb of Cleveland, Oh that has a population of roughly 19,000 people of those people a handful are minorities. Growing up in this environment I often heard words that I now understand are illogical and represent stupidity on the part of people who unfortunately do not know better. As I began to look at universities to attend for college I made a trip to Fordham University in the Bronx. I quickly learned that this environment was completely different than anything that I had ever experienced. As a result I was immediately drawn toward the Bronx and ultimately decided to attend Fordham University.
Now I have returned to Ohio and live in Bowling Green, Oh and work with the football team and as a result of my experiences in the Bronx I am much more equipped to work with players of all races. Further, I live with two African Americans a thought at one point in my life I would have not imagined. I experience race on a daily basis though despite my growth in handling matters of race certain ideas and topics are still not comfortable areas of discussion.
Why? I am not completely certain though there seems to exist a certain understanding among not only myself but those I interact with that certain areas of race do not belong in casual conversation. These areas are a byproduct of ideologies that have been established throughout history and despite how comfortable I and or my roommates or players get with one another will not be talked about. Therefore, what I am trying to say is that although race dialogues have become more opened for me personally, there still exists a certain barrier. Do I think this barrier will ever be completely removed? No, though with each day the ability to discuss all areas of race increases.
I think race is an uncomfortable topic for most people, just look at our class discussion on the topic- only a few people discussed it at all. It is such a sensitive topic that has so many facets (historical, social, personal, etc.) that it is just too much for a lot of people to really tackle head on. Still, it is a vastly important subject to have a dialog about, and, as you said, each day your ability increases. It's all about making the little steps that counts. After all, any discussion is better than no discussion at all, even if it is a little guarded.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing what you did, Ian, about the different settings in which you had lived. And Steve, thanks for sharing your comments as well. Actually, I did not know that Fordham was located in the Bronx; and I really know very little about the school or the Bronx. Tonight I was listening to a discussion about the Mark Twain classic-Huckleberry Finn, that many schools have banned because of the use of the "N-word." Much of the discussion centered around exactly what Ian wrote about in his entry, i.e., the discomfort so many of us have in discussing issues related to race. I grew up in a community that was very much like Avon Lake, so I can relate to your background. I also know that even if it is difficult to discuss at times, I am going to persist in trying to find ways to open up dialogs about race. I appreciate what both of you shared on the subject.
ReplyDeleteSteve,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. Is it (race) really too much to handle? Or have we been made into thinking it is too much by society and the media in which we grew up. I cant be a hypocrit I did not say a word in class though my roommates and I talked about it when we got home. I want to say the classroom setting more than the topic detered others from speaking at least it did for me.
Dr. Spencer,
I appreciate your effort to get us to dialouge about race openly and can only hope it becomes easier for race discussions to occur.