Step 1.5: Non-Binary, Nuanced Thinking

Before I outline the next official step; (Step 2 of 11) there is a concept that has been nagging me and I want to dig into with you as it is the unspoken underpinning of my whole list. I want to emphatically state my view is this:

We no longer live in a world where we can accept binary solutions and responses to the questions and dynamics that plague us. Full stop.

If a suggested solution is yes/no, up/down, off/on, right/left, then that solution has probably missed the point.

For example: Are Trump voters racists? Well… it’s complicated. No matter what your favorite news source tells you, there’s no simple answer to this question: There’s a non-negligible number of Trump supporters that voted for Obama - sometimes even twice. When pushed on their views on race, many will tell you they don’t see color, and will express outrage at the accusation they’re less than equitable in their views and actions. When confronted with the classically racist words and actions of their candidate-turned-President, many will make excuses, gaslight their questioner (and perhaps themselves) with ‘alternative facts’ that make whatever anecdote-in-question you’ve presented them with appear to be non-racially motivated, or deflect immediately to their views on his work elsewhere -- “But look at the economy!” In the rare case of accepting the underlying racism of a Trump administration action or policy, they will distance themselves from it, with a view of “well that’s him, that’s not me.” or “Well I don’t agree with him on everything.” So -- we have a situation where a large swath of the electorate *with no personal claims to racist intent* has empowered a leader who unapologetically fans flames of racism, re-tweets racist rhetoric, outrightly expresses his superiority to persons of color, and works hard behind the scenes to sure up the political and physical walls of white superiority.

Tricky, right?

I share this example not to exonerate liberal bias and discrimination, as it is as real and insidious as any other form, but only to commiserate and outline an experience I’ve had, and I’m sure some of you have had as well, countless times since election day on 2016 with good friends and good people who view things differently than me.

With the advent of technology, our brains are forced to process countless amounts of data, information, media... more than we were designed to handle. Quick decisions, quick categorizations, and swift information filing are the tools we use to survive and get from sunup to sundown. But how should we process information when society needs us not to ‘just survive’, but to thrive. What do we do when we recognize it’s time to watch and help our neighbors thrive as well?

One way is to take a step back, and look for *wisdom*. Think about every movie that has a wise elder character that the protagonist seeks advice from… I bet you’d be hard-pressed to find a (good) movie where that wise character suggests the obvious move. “Well..um… go kill the bad guy.” would NOT be in a script worthy of Oscar nods. Most always, there is a complexity, a nuance that hadn’t previously been considered, or some other complication that we need to get to the heart of.

So how do we fuse wisdom, an overwhelming influx of information, and the desire to do better for our neighbors?

I’m going to try to tackle that tomorrow in:

STEP TWO: Accept, Challenge, and Offset Your Own Racism