One of the things I’ve learned over the years is that people stand where they sit. If your dad was a worker in a steel plant, odds are he was in a union. He voted that way and he understood the plight of the working man and you do too.
If mom was a single parent whose husband left before you were born, you might have a mistrust of marriage or even of men. A professor at an east coast university might not trust the ideals of Midwesterners or might believe they really don’t understand the world correctly. So, we “stand” on issues where we “sit” in life—you get it.
So when my husband and Unite Indy co-founder, Jim, (a white, Massachusetts native, transplanted to Indiana many years ago) sat down with Brishon Bond, (a black Indianapolis businessman and member of Black Lives Matter) to go head to head on some commonly used racial terms, there was bound to be some disagreement. But Jim was impressed with the guy he knew from a men’s Bible study. Brishon was smart and seemed a little angry, so Jim pursued a meeting.
Well, the conversation was a mess. They disagreed on the most generally-accepted terms. They knocked heads as they spoke from their experiences, sometimes with an angry edge. But as they talked on, they inadvertently built a bridge over what had been a racial divide and began a true friendship that produced the video that is part of this blog. *Filmed at Unite Indy’s Forum on Race Relationships.
So, what does “Black Lives Matter” mean? To a white guy it means one thing. To a black guy, it is something else altogether. Jim argued “Of course black lives matter! All lives matter.” But Brishon had a different take (as you’ll see in the video). “White Privilege” was an oxymoron to Jim who initially thought, “Who me?” My privilege was to work every minute I wasn’t in school, to always have chores, and to always pay for what I have. Again, Brishon looked at the term from a completely different perspective.
Like the rest of us, Jim and Brishon each stand where life has given them a seat. But through dialog and mutual respect, they have formed a fellowship of understanding. They will tell you that to do this, it takes honesty, humility and an open heart, but that the effort is worth it.
The Human Race is not one we run against each other. It is one we run against our unenlightened selves. Only when we conform ourselves more closely to the One who welcomed all, will we have the victory.
Blessings,
Nancy
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