There’S A Place For You In The Effort Against Prejudice

Sat., Oct. 9, 1999

Stacy Hersrud Special To Opinion

I am executive director of the Martin Luther King Jr., Family Outreach Center. Two months after I started my new job, on the morning of Dr. King’s birthday, I stopped by the center to meet a news crew. I got there and saw black-and-white pamphlets - hundreds of them - all over the playground. They had a photo of Dr. King and a rifle’s crosshairs superimposed on his forehead.

My immediate reaction was sadness. I had never before been confronted with a tangible sign of hatred. Then, I was scared for the kids and angry that the pamphlets had violated their playground.

I am often asked to speak about race and prejudice and why it matters. I am always surprised someone would have to ask why. Surprised because it seems self-evident. Self-evident when we consider our increasing interconnectedness as evidenced by the World Wide Web. Self-evident when we consider that by 2025, whites will be approaching minority status in this country and are not the predominant race or culture worldwide. Self-evident when you consider the chaos that will result from not making the fruits of capitalism as universally accessible as possible.

Self-evident when you remember the words of one of our greatest teachers, who said: Whatsoever you do unto the littlest of yourselves, you do unto me.

Rather than face prejudice, we’re much more comfortable denying and hiding, and comparing ourselves to someone else. “I’m not as bad … or I can’t change it.” It has become easier to withdraw from social and personal responsibility than to just stand up and do what’s right. We measure ourselves by our bank accounts, our vehicles, having the right friends and the right job. And yet there is this deepening hole within our lives.

One way to begin to fill the hole, heal ourselves, and create community is through participation in the Healing Groups and Simplicity Circles now forming in the Inland Northwest. (Call 509-477-2168 for more information.)

We need to get honest about the inequality that most people live with on a daily basis. This inequality undermines the full human capacity of individuals. This inequality causes us to forget how precious we are.

The movement for social justice is the cashing of the check, the promissory note guaranteed in the Constitution of the United States of America.

Local journalism is essential.

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