You've Got To Be Taught

Our new president was sworn in Tuesday, and again Wednesday night.

Because of an "abundance of caution," the Chief Justice administered the oath of office again to Barack Obama just a little while after I began working on this blogpost.


We're gonna see a bit more of that "abundance of caution" for the next four years, because Mr. Obama is a pioneer. Just like Jackie Robinson and Arthur Ashe. Just like many before him, of all creeds and colors, who happened to be the "first" in a job or elected office, there will be those critics that will find fault with the least inadvertant look, any unmeasured gesture, or an unguarded reaction. Of course, there will be enough out there that will freak out at the measured gestures, guarded reactions, etc.

I don't believe it will be any more of an issue with President Obama than it was with the others I've mentioned, because I believe he (like Jackie and Arthur) has the quality of character to serve under such duress and scrutiny and exceed our expectations. That said, I don't expect it is going to be a cakewalk for him or his family.

As I was growing up in SC, I was taught that there were people who were different than me. There were people who were not of "my caliber," folks whom I shouldn't associate with because of some fault found in their background or their lineage. Some of those folks were of a different race. Some were from a different economic background. Some were just folks who had an accent, or weren't part of my family's religious beliefs, or were different in so many, many other ways.

I was a pretty hard-headed kid and really didn't listen to my parents (and, in quite a few cases, I probably should've). I made friends with, dated, kissed, hugged, played with, hung out with, got drunk with, partied with, jammed with, and lived with more than a few of the people that might not have passed my parents' inspection. (I wouldn't be surprised if some of my best friends now wouldn't pass inspection.) Back then, I used to worry about things like that; now that I'm older and more aware of who I am, I know that I'm the one at the wheel of my own ship.

When I do look back, I do have some regrets about opportunities that I missed in regards to not getting to know someone, but never because I got to know someone.

Now, I'm not putting all this out there 'cause my parents were bad racists or something. That's not the case. Their biases were usually more subtle than that. And I know that what they taught me was meant to protect me, but I now know that kind of protection leads to a very narrow kind of thinking. The kind of thinking that says a young man of mixed race could never be elected to the highest office in our country. The kind of thinking that says anyone with an Arabic middle name could not be elected to the highest office in our country.

As big of a fan as I am of theater, one of my favorite characters I've ever played was in South Pacific: the French plantation owner, Emile de Becque, who falls for the Army nurse from Arkansas, but is rejected by her when she finds he's fathered two children by a previous wife of a different race (Polynesian). My own struggles overcoming my biases and prejudices gave me a bit more understanding of the depth of this show, and hopefully informed my interpretation of the character.

I'm not saying that I've overcome all my biases, either. Though I look past skin color and family background and accent and sexual orientation and mannerisms and all, there is still a part of me that holds one thing a bit higher than others, and I'm sure you can figure it out by my closing comment: I love that the SMART guy won!