Step 8: Use Your Imagination: We Are All Ready for Something New

Good afternoon and welcome back to 11 Things You Can Do RIGHT NOW to Improve The Obstacle of Race in America! Today I want to talk about the importance of letting our minds wander when it comes to solutions for American racial inequality.

We’re confronted with the gargantuan task of solving a problem baked into the infrastructure of our country, that has been approached by some of the best minds, and still, here we are. While we’re fortunate to have the writings of visionaries, the research of scholars, and the speeches of leaders as benchmarks of where we’ve been and where we’re going, the advent of technology has opened up a channel that flows faster than any river, and is only limited by the speed of your wi-fi: Crowdsourcing. I believe that the best solutions to this problem won’t come from our establishment, because unlike what Tim Scott said this morning about our country not being racist, but having racism in it, I think it is “in” our establishment. It is in our country’s DNA. But I *also* believe most all of our better angels have been begging us to unravel that “establishment” for some time.

The best example of how we, on both sides of the aisle, are truly ready to dismantle the unpleasantries of the establishment is a quick look back at the last decade in the White House. Sorry, but here’s a quick but necessary detour into politics:

While some people may think that we have a system where racism is so ingrained that it's directly to “blame” for the presidency of Donald Trump, I want to pause that narrative for just a moment. As I’ve pointed out a couple times in this series, so many people who voted for Donald Trump in 2016 also voted for Barack Obama in 2008 or 2012. I’ve been grappling with this reality for days and really for years. How, in a moment when racial animus has reached a fever pitch, where we see so many of our neighbors conflate flag-toting patriotism with MAGA hats, xenophobia and “deplorable” ideas can they have voted for a black president. TWICE? My synopsis is that they never really “cared” about race. They didn’t then, they don’t now. They Just. Don’t. Care. The group of citizens that crossed over party and racial lines, wanted change. They saw an establishment that wasn’t working for them or their families, and they wanted the guy who visually or rhetorically was the furthest thing from a traditional embodiment of the establishment. Call it Pollyanna if you wish, but I believe those of us interested in a new vision of the establishment can leverage the discontent of so many of those voters to become great allies in this push forward.

First, for those doubting my optimism and claims of non-malicious racial intent by our brothers and sisters on the right, let’s dig in a bit more. This conclusion compliments a few themes from this little series of actionable vignettes. First off, Step 1’s look at weaponized words on race: It’s hard to define yourself as a racist or engage with that accusation of being one if you just don’t care about race. Perhaps that’s what people mean when they’ve deftly postulated “I Don’t See Race” or “I’m Colorblind.” That is their way of saying they don’t care about race. A few years ago we could accept this viewpoint as an allyship to the cause, but we know now, through the writings of authors like Ibram X. Kendi in his book “How to Be an Anti-Racist” that active racism and passive racial apathy are closely aligned in the ongoing saga of White Supremacy. If we think about yesterday’s Step 7 and the quick examination of inequality, one of the main points was “inequality thrives when we are ignorant to or shielded from its existence.” So here, we’ve had the perfect storm of ignorance (either through limited exposure or conscious ostrich-like behavior) and apathy which in summation allows racial inequality to flourish.

As a quick wave of editorial optimism, I want to highlight I’m encouraged by this pre-existing condition of Racial Apathy. Why? Because it’s going away. While racism has been an inextricable part of the American Experiment thus far, I do believe the majority of our citizens are open to change when they see change is here. Whether it’s from a place of deep personal experience with oppression or simply the wind gusts of popularity that inspire a fairweather sports fan, people like to feel like they’re on the right side of history. Like Covid in February, white supremacy has been left to float unchecked in American air, for generations, with only a few key moments of nation-wide intervention: Well, here is our moment of intervention.

So back to where we started: Today’s step is to use your imagination. You. Me. All of us. Trump Voters, Biden Voters, everyone. Let’s crowdsource the future of race in America. Your task, which might sound like Disney Movie level simplicity, is to come up with ONE idea, big or small, that you think would improve race in America. You don’t even have to come up with it, it can be an idea you’ve heard that resonated with you. But I want you to take that one idea and shop it around. Talk about it with your spouse, your friends, that cool co-worker who won’t call HR to complain about your annoying and incessant enthusiasm for your new-found social mission. But talk about it. Again, this might sound overly optimistic, but when we go back to the Butterfly Effect we talked about yesterday, we all know the impact of one idea or one action. So imagine if everyone who reads this takes one idea, new or old, and becomes a champion of that idea. The worst case scenario is that some of those ideas will be TERRIBLE, and will be challenged by those you shop it around with. In that event, you’ll learn why people don’t love the idea, and you’ll grow from it. Best case scenario? That idea catches on like wildfire, and a day or week or year from now, we’re back here talking about how you helped cure racism. Pretty cool, right?