Students at the Bronx High School of Performance and Stagecraft watch and discuss Barack Obama’s speech on racial reconciliation and how it relates to their lives. Listen to these young people.
A teacher took the time to draw these young people out and make it a safe environment to bring up hard issues and he facilitated a healthy discussion about becoming politically engaged.
Why is something so simple so difficult for adults? We should be embarrassed at so much of our population’s lack of interest in thinking through our biases and bridging these divisions. How does it get stamped out of us?
10 Responses to “Watch this video - students discuss The Speech”
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I think it’s because as adults, we’ve had too many encounters where the discussion was shut down/destructive because of reactions. It ends up seeming easier just to avoid it than accidentally give offense– or discover just how offensive someone else can be. And outright bigotry can be stomach-turning… or, for that matter, there’s a sense of empathic pain, among other unpleasant sensations, when one finds out about the hurts racism has inflicted on others.
Those of us who have white privilege don’t necessarily want it, but while we value the learning process, there’s a lot of heartache, shock, discomfort and shame involved.
Even writing this is shaming, because, damn, it really should be a small sacrifice, to open ourselves to criticism, to ask questions, to hear the truth– and to be prepared to find out the worst, sometimes, about people we thought we liked. (I have a grandmother who uses the n* word and doesn’t think slavery was such a terrible thing. I think that’s why I really can’t be comfortable around her.) It’s still a small price to pay to try to make the world more equal.
It really seems like these conversations need to be facilitated — to counteract the programming we’ve received, either by defensive reactions or political correctness, to simply avoid the issue. The teacher’s facilitation made all the difference in the world. He gave them “permission” and to feel safe.
We seem to be a culture more than willing to forgive mistakes of all kinds that are certainly more egregious than a comment made out of racial insensitivity or ignorance, yet these reactions absolutely shut down conversations.
That’s why I believe the whole “blame whitey” chip on the shoulder is equally responsible for the stalemate as the denial of the continuing existence of white privilege or wishful thinking on the part of whites that the problem has somehow corrected itself over time. Feeling paralyzing white guilt isn’t productive, since that is what also shuts down the conversation.
We also live in a culture that is politically polarized to such a degree on just about everything. When it comes to race, at least from my point of view, all along the political spectrum we can do a lot better on race matters. That’s why I see Condi Rice’s comments on Obama’s speech as helpful, regardless of what political motivations lie behind them. The fact that she publicly agrees that the discussion is in order should signal to all of us the magnitude of the problem. We shouldn’t pass the denial or shame forward to the next generation.
We all have to realize, as these students do, that it’s ok to ask questions about difference, to use personal experiences to explain how they view the world when it comes to race — and how we can all be more self-aware and agree to do the work on repairing (or tossing out) those implicit bias “tapes” playing in our head.
Don’t think for one second that you haven’t done the same, Pam.
A million thanks for being such a strong advocate and no matter what may be going on in your RL, fostering a similar “classroom of neighborhood” here for all. I and others have learned, and no doubt will continue to learn, so much for these open discussions. Grassroots efforts such as these can affect change…
I actually meant “classroom or neighborhood”, but I really like the way that mistake sounds!
You know whats truly astounding, I hear similar sentiments from white kids in rural North Carolina.
You talk to them and engage them in an honest discussion and let them step outside of the expected racial dynamic they will blow your mind. They’ve been brought up in a subtly (sometimes outright but often very subtle) racist culture all the while being told racism is bad. They hear and see Obama transcend the color line and they hear him speak to them.
Kids whose great-great grandfathers owned slaves and whose great grandfathers were klan members are listening to Barack and thinking. They are so damn inspired by him sometimes it almost brings me to tears. Obama’s speech on race spoke to the core of every American.
Obama, the first gen x to ever have a serious chance at the presidency has reignited my faith in gen Y. These kids who are in high school and college right now are damn sure they are going to change the world. IMO this is the first generation since the 60s that knows it can change the world. Its not the brash gonna-stage-a-revolution kind of hope like there was back then. These young people have a calm quite reserved hope that, at least for the moment, seems as inexorable as the tides.
Disclaimer: these are my peers i am writing about so i’m as giddy on optimism as any you’ll find.
You know whats truly astounding, I hear similar sentiments from white kids in rural North Carolina.
You talk to them and engage them in an honest discussion and let them step outside of the expected racial dynamic they will blow your mind. They’ve been brought up in a subtly (sometimes outright but often very subtle) racist culture all the while being told racism is bad. They hear and see Obama transcend the color line and they hear him speak to them.
Kids whose great-great grandfathers owned slaves and whose great grandfathers were klan members are listening to Barack and thinking. They are so damn inspired by him sometimes it almost brings me to tears. Obama’s speech on race spoke to the core of every American.
Obama, the first gen x to ever have a serious chance at the presidency has reignited my faith in gen Y. These kids who are in high school and college right now are damn sure they are going to change the world. IMO this is the first generation since the 60s that knows it can change the world. Its not the brash gonna-stage-a-revolution kind of hope like there was back then. These young people have a calm quite reserved hope that, at least for the moment, seems as inexorable as the tides.
Disclaimer: these are my peers i am writing about so i’m as giddy on optimism as any you’ll find.
I love that this video illustrates how important hope is. One thing that so many people have said about Obama’s campaign is that they think everyone is naive for feeling hopeful but the fact of the matter is that as a species, humans need hope to want to operate in the world.
My friends and I have talked a lot in the last few years about how hopeless we have felt and how we notice it affecting our day to day lives. You have to believe that things are possible to want to get out of bed in the morning.
Look at how much more motivated those kids seem just to be students because they feel hopeful in general. And look at how that motivation manifests itself into actual action.
(Not having watched the video yet)
I can say one thing that is hard for adults of a certain age is fear.
Somewhere along in my upbringing, I got the idea that I should walk on tiptoes around race, and I was literally scared of saying something racially insensitive, or treating black folks differently. The problem is, that meant that when I saw a black person, I was focused on *not* saying or doing something stupid. Which, of course, meant I felt horribly awkward and riddled with stupid things I could say or do. And, of course, I treated black folks differently, by being in a panic when they were around, which doubled the self-consciousness.
(NB: my fear wasn’t that I’d be attacked or anything; it was that I’d be one of *those* people… those awful scumsucking racists.)
I can easily see someone feeling a similar burden, and blaming black folks for imposing that burden. But, seriously, look at it. Who put that burden on me? *ME*. No one else.
Maybe that’s a bit harsh on myself; I developed the fear as a young child, and who controls their own destiny then? But no one told me that if I slipped up and said something stupid, I’d be a scumsucking racist. And in the end, there’s no one else who has the responsibility of getting rid of damnfool ideas that end up inside my head. It’d be nice if my parents could have, but they didn’t know.
Anyway: both the fear of acting like a racist, and rebellion against a perceived burden probably create a great deal of discomfort in issues of race.
I also get the feeling that a lot of folks feel that there isn’t room for growth or learning. Can anyone tell me if they see what I mean, and agree or not? I get the feeling that some folks see the matter as you’re either racist scum, or you’re one of the good guys, and there’s simply no crossing over. There’s no learning, there’s no growth, there’s no forgiveness.
And that fear is exacerbated by minorities, who give off the “tired of explaining to whitey” vibe and have that reaction you fear — taking offense, dismissing an unintentional slight because of that person’s sheltered existence, etc.
That’s why I said all sides involved (and this applies to all minorities in historically oppressed groups) need to cut each other some slack and stop avoiding the conversations to bridge the gap, and gain more understanding.
As I’ve said many times here, the fact that many progressives (never mind conservatives) have few or no black friends that they could consider close enough to have these discussions speaks volumes. By following human nature to group with people who are more like you, most people don’t expend the energy or have any interest in seeking or learning about others with different backgrounds. That’s one of the tragedies of adulthood, since it is, in many ways, more difficult to make friends as that implicit bias tape takes over.
I feel lucky that I went to a high school (Stuyvesant in Manhattan, class of ‘81), and had an extremely diverse group of friends (black, Jewish, Egyptian, Greek, Italian, and a laundry list of others) who did have an interest in each other’s backgrounds, with our commonality being that we were geeky.
Makes complete sense to me, longhairedweirdo…
I never knew hair, of all things, could be a potentially loaded topic!
A great pal of mine/black coworker in Baltimore and I had a fabulous conversation when she asked me how I got my hair so straight. I said, “Um… genetics?”, she laughed and asked if she could touch it (was almost to my waist and super soft from swimming in Chesapeake Bay alot). We were in our early 20’s; some older coworkers watched us and slowly added/ participated with comments. It took awhile for the barriers that Tina and I had always ignored to come down for them- but they DID.
Next thing I knew, a big bunch of us were gabbing about what we had to go through for the sake of our hair. I never knew about ironing, how harsh some of the chemicals were, and fell in love with her cornrows. (I tried to have it done to mine once, but they fell out fairly quickly, but I loved them!!)
Small, simple conversations. Over incidental, every day things or situations. A willingness to ask, to listen, to share, to learn to each other on an equal footing. These simple conversations can make a difference, given frequency, time and sincerity.