Can We Talk?

I am not trying to beat the dead horse on Donald Trump’s head, particularly since the media has moved on. After Trump’s demand to see President Obama’s birth certificate, top headlines switched to the Lakers being swept away from the playoffs; where in the world is Sarah Palin’s bus?; and, Anthony Weiner’s wiener.

However, I do have a few thoughts about the brouhaha Trump fueled. Like other times, we displayed attention deficit with the next headline and missed another opportunity to discuss race relations in America.

Some people who believe the birther tale say the issue is not where the president was born – it is about his policies. Okay. Raise issues about his policies, not about his birthplace with undertones of how he is “different.”

The diversity of America is part of the greatness and exceptionalism in America. We are a nation of immigrants, descendants of people who came here willingly and unwillingly. Yet, we risk the fullness of what this means – for this country as a leader to other nations – by refusing to deal openly and honestly with the cancer that threatens this nation.

When faced with a news story that threatened to implode his presidential campaign, then Senator Obama gave a speech on race. He attempted to reconcile the divide and at the same time steer our minds towards what should connect us as a nation. In part, this is what he said:

“We cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together, unless we perfect our union by understanding that we may have different stories, but we hold common hopes; that we may not look the same and we may not have come from the same place, but we all want to move in the same direction — toward a better future for our children and our grandchildren.”

I often say that on September 11, 2001, we were not White, Black, Asian, Latino or Other. We were Americans. The terrorists did not wait until Black or White Americans left the towers; they did not even secure Muslims who also died on that day. Rather, they were unified with one mind and one goal – to kill Americans.

I do not pretend to have the answer. I am one of over 300 million people in this country. However, I do believe that we can have one voice that is rich in diversity and acceptance.

Recently, my daughter, grand diva and I went to Zoo Atlanta. My grand diva connected with another girl who was also at the zoo with her family. Immediately, the two held hands and talked about different things, including what they had in common. Ironically, they share the same name and age.

At one point, the little girl asked my grand diva to take off her sunglasses. When she removed her sunglasses, the little girl said, “You have brown eyes just like me! You are my BFF!” This was two little girls enthralled with what they had in common, not the difference in their skin color.

If we reach for what is human, perhaps we can disregard our prejudices, our differences. If we disregard our prejudices, our differences, perhaps we can find what connects us as human beings and makes us whole.

“Race relations can be an appropriate issue . . . but only if you want to craft solutions, and not catalogue complaints. If we use the issue appropriately, we can transform it from the cancer of our society into the cure.” David Dinkins, former Mayor of New York