Low-Hanging Fruit

"Racism is low-hanging fruit"-Henry Rollins.

The evil that occurred by the hand of Dylann Roof could have been avoided. A teacher that took interest in him, a set of friends who got him interested in games (even on the internet), a parent who filled his time with something positive... but instead he was isolated and left on the internet to find evil. A club that he felt he was welcomed in, because racism is welcoming to any young white man. And then he has a group to blame his isolation on.

Do we want to stop evil from taking over? Then we need to make sure our young people are connected with positive people, doing positive things. I'm not saying it comes easy, but ignoring them doesn't work.

Empire Crutch: An Introduction to Oppression

Oppression is the heart of every empire.  Without oppression, international political or economic rule could not exist.  It is not just that there must be sacrifices made to create a new establishment, but that there must be a class of people whose resources are tapped to create a power base and an economic support for some to live a utopic lifestyle who will not partake in that lifestyle.

There is always the ruling class, who have recently been named the “1 percent”.  They are the main beneficiaries of the utopic lifestyle, but they are also have resources that greatly outweigh their own personal use, and they make the determination who and what receives their power to create their ideal.  Then there are the mass of people who consider themselves the beneficiaries of a well-run society.  They consider themselves “normal” or “average” when really they live above the standards of the majority of the world. They support political, military and economic levers that allow them to keep that privilege.  In the ancient world, this “middle class” were the male land owners, the citizens for whom the laws were made and the land was protected.  An ancient civilization would only be counted successful or powerful if this citizen class was promoted and strengthened.

And then there are the mass of oppressed.  These are those who give to society with the idea of being a part of the middle class, but they never reach it because their resources are necessary to keep the middle class in their privileged position.  This would be the class of people for whom the laws do not apply, are not protected by the police, and are generally feared by the citizen class. This is the group whose employment is forced to seriously disrupt their home life, who must sacrifice themselves “for the benefit of everyone”, whose health is secondary to the health of the system, who even dies so that a greater ideal might be met.  These are those who are forced to do things they would never do or else they lose their ability to survive. They are also the servant class who are ruled, but never rule.  They are the outcast (called by Marx the lumpen-proletariat) who are never welcome into the life of the “normal” because of their social level.  They are those whose past actions forever haunt them.  They are those labeled as “criminals” although never guilty of a criminal act.  They are those who are too disabled, mentally or physically, to ever obtain a “normalized” status.  In some societies, they are women, they are certain races, or they are the poor and one of those societies might be our own.

But this is how empire has always worked and always will.  There must be a lower class whose resources support the citizen class. There must be those who will exchange some of the trappings of the citizen class for a life of servitude.  There will always be slaves, whether we call them that or not, who will work for less than what they need to survive.  And there will always be those who are disrespected, harassed, beaten, arrested, and killed because they belong to a non-citizen class.  These are the oppressed.

Oppression is not about individuals.  An individual can be harmed or be misjudged.  An individual can be murdered or martyred.  Oppression happens when a group or class of people are denied their rights.  That because they belong to a certain ideology, race, sex or social class, they no longer have the rights of “normal” people, or citizens.  That because they are a member of a certain group then certain protections of normal citizens don’t pertain to them.  If a citizen cannot be incarcerated without a fair trial, they are incarcerated without trial all the time.  If a citizen isn’t to be beaten, they are beaten.  If a citizen is a full person, the oppressed group are but a fraction of that.

Oppression does not mean having limitations, having one’s privileges revoked or having one’s rights restricted.  Every class has changes and debates as to what they deserve or do not.  That is part of life in any society.  Every single human being suffers.  Every human being comes up against a wall that prevents them from doing what they feel they ought.

Oppression is legal beatings, arrests for not participating in criminal activity, having no legal protection, suffering damage with no recourse.  Oppression is not being allowed in certain public spaces, being officially asked to leave a city, being escorted to the border and told not to come back.  Oppression is public hatred for no wrong doing, is being hurt for doing good, is official rejection because of a harmless opinion.

So a basic definition of oppression is: a group which is officially persecuted by a government, but not for criminal activity.

How Do We End Prejudice in our Society?

Every prejudice in human existence—racism, classism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia, hobophobia and any other phobia or –ism you wish to name—will not end when we see all people the same as us.  To see all people the same is to grant power to those who already have power, to maintain the current prejudices.  To claim racism and classism doesn’t exist is to say that the status quo of killings and people sleeping in the snow and rape and war is an acceptable cost for our society and culture.  But our society is deeply broken. 

So how do we change?  I'll talk about a couple of ways. There are many more, but these are two that seem anti-intuitive in our society.

First, we must stop seeing people as just as good as us.  We must not look at the African American and say that he is as good as a white man.  Rather, we need to see the black man with all of his cultural differences and irritating habits and recognize that he is better for being black.  In many ways, he is better than a white man, and we need to admire those qualities and thank God that he isn’t the same as a white man and so give him unique opportunities that whites couldn’t get because he’s better than that.  We need to look at a woman and give her opportunities that men couldn’t get because she’s better than he is.  We need to look at the homeless and the Latino and the transgender and the mentally ill and rather than forcing them to fit in as “normal” we need to see their uniqueness and recognize that they deserve an equal place because they are of unique cultures and see things and respond to things differently than we.   We need to stop demanding that these “minority” cultures act “normal” in order to get a seat at the decision-making table.  In a multi-cultural society we need to hear from all cultures to make the society work.  This does not mean fitting each cultural group into a set role—our society tried that and it didn’t work.  Rather, an international corporation needs to hire a black CEO because he is  black.  A church needs to ordain a woman because she is a woman.  A city council needs to invite a homeless advocate to vote because she is homeless.  We allow our children to marry people of other races. Not because they have learned to be “white enough” or “male enough” or “middle-class enough” to be heard.

Second, to end the prejudice of our society, each minority culture and community need to make their own decisions about their communities.  A majority culture leader, or group of leaders, should not be deciding issues for a minority community.  A mayor in the pocket of the business community should not be making decisions for the homeless community.  Yes, the business community’s concerns should be heard and worked with, but they cannot be the deciding factor in a city’s actions to the homeless.  Rather, the leaders of the homeless community should be the loudest voice as to what happens to the homeless community.  The reason for this is because any “solution” handed to a community will never be successful unless they have  bought into it themselves.  And they will never buy into it unless they have the loudest voice in creating it.  Changes in community must come from the community, not from a culture that does not understand the community.  The Hispanic community should be allowed to make their own choices for their community.  Whites shouldn’t be making decisions for them, or for the Black community, as if they “know what’s best for them.”   They don’t.  The rich don’t know what’s best for the poor.  Men can’t decide what’s best for women, nor the other way around.  Groups should be allowed to speak for themselves and to determine their community’s destiny.

We live in a society where all these cultures should be equal.  This means equal opportunities, equal rights, and equal power.  Unfortunately, it is human nature to not give power or opportunity if it means that one’s own person or culture loses opportunity or power.  This is where Christ’s call to humility comes in.  Humility isn’t thinking less of oneself, according to Jesus.  Rather, it is taking a lower station than one deserves.  It is time for those of us who naturally can take a powerful place, whose voices are naturally heard, and give our place to others.  Once we have gained the status and power of this world, it is time for us to step down and surrender it, so that others can have it.  No, they will not use power in the way we thing is best.  In our opinion, they might screw everything up.  But it will be their opportunity, their choices and our society, in the end, will be better for it.

Let us who have control learn to lower ourselves to give others the opportunities we had.

Why Is There Such Anger about the Grand Jury's Decision in Ferguson?

I have heard many of my (white) friends question the anger over a single decision.  "Why is there such anger over this decision in Ferguson? And why are there lootings and riots? Why can't they just trust that there wasn't enough evidence to indict?" Here's my answer, as much as I can understand:

The issue has less to do with the particular police officer and whether he acted rightly.  Rather, it has to do with how African Americans have been treated in Ferguson for years.  As my friend Nathan Strong put it:

Ferguson population: just shy of 16,000. (15865)
Race distribution: 63% black, 33.65% white

- Out of 5384 stops, 86% were black, 12.7% white
- Out of 611 searches, 91.9% were black, 7.6% white
- Out of 521 arrests, 92.7% were black, 6.9% white

They have been living with oppression for years at the hands of the police.  They have not exactly trusted that the official systems of Ferguson would offer justice, but they were giving the systems a chance.  An indictment was their last opportunity for justice through "proper channels" and that opportunity was thrown back in their face. 

The oppressed of Ferguson were waiting for some justice. They were peacefully protesting and honestly requesting justice. And they were hoping, if not expecting, that if they insisted, peacefully, to the powers of law and justice that they would receive some justice. Justice, in this case, would primarily mean that the police force would use fairness between the races in their use of the law. That people would not have to be shot if they were unarmed. If the police had said that they would change their policies, or re-train their force, that would have been okay. But in the months since the protests began, there was only defensiveness, not a single move toward change.

 If there is not systemic change from within the police, or from the governors, then they would have been satisfied with a certain level of retribution against one officer who has wronged the African American community. In this case, not only was there not retributive justice, but there was not even the opportunity for a fair trail. Court justice was shut down before it began.

There are also a lot of questions about looting and burning, which makes sense, because it seems self-destructive. First of all, it must be said that the majority of protesters were not violent. And almost all the protests in previous months had no violence in it. There is a minority of people (in every community, not just the African American community) who feel, like a child, that if you can't get attention from acting positively, then you can get attention by acting negatively. Looting and burning is a scream, "If you won't help me, I'll destroy what you think is most important!" No, it isn't productive, and it is self destructive, just like a child's tantrum.

When my first born was a toddler, he would throw long, violent tantrums. After a bit of his self-harm, I would hold him and keep him from lashing out until he had worn himself out. After months of occasionally dealing with this, my wife and I discovered that he was lashing out like this because he wasn't getting enough food. We made sure that he ate enough and then the tantrums stopped, never to return.

If communities want to stop lootings, then they need to give all communities the opportunity to live without oppression and hated. They need to stop assuming that because someone is black and male that they are dangerous. They need to stop beating and shooting those they have hope in. And if there is evidence of a systematic prejudice, the communities need to hear an apology and see real change.

So many of my white friends seem to be under the misapprehension that the issue is whether Darren Wilson used proper force or not. That is not what the protests are about, and that is not what I am upset about. The anger this day is the lost opportunity for the oppressed people of Ferguson to be heard by the systems that oppress them. Until yesterday, there was a chance, however slim, that the systems might have to change to bring justice to the victims of those systems. There is anger because now that chance is lost.

I am personally angry because if the strongly supported oppressed communities of Ferguson can't get justice, then how will my communities of the homeless of Portland and Gresham get justice? They have almost no support asking for justice for them, and they have little energy left to stand up for themselves. If there isn't justice for the African Americans of Ferguson, how can there possibly be justice for the oppressed of my community?

Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Monoculturalism Destroys the World

Everyone wants to battle prejudice. To label people by their group, to stereotype an individual by who they look like or false ideas about their group is a horrendous crime. However, sociology teaches us that this is not a crime that we can just point at and jeer, but rather it is a sin within our own hearts. There is not a single person who has ever lived who has not made a determination of another’s personality, goals or vices based solely on one’s looks, one’s accent, one’s clothes or the people one is friendly with. Labeling on insufficient evidence is hardwired within us, and we will all stumble because we assume that our current experience with a person is based on a previous experience or story of an experience with someone we put in their same category. To confront a bigot, all we have to do is talk to the mirror.

It is for this reason that many Western societies have targeted certain areas of prejudice. We have laws against some forms of racism and sexism. We decry homophobia and religious bigotry. And so we should. Because to limit one’s rights or ability to survive due to one’s beliefs, one’s sex, one’s race or one’s sexual orientation is wrong. Every adult, without exception, should be allowed to make their own decisions about how to meet their needs, as long as it does not harm another. If one person has the money for an apartment, then all who can afford it and not harm others should get the same apartment. If one person can sit in a bar to drink, then all should be allowed. This is what Martin Luther King Jr. died for.

There is far to go in these focuses. Yes, an African American has been elected president, but thirty six percent of all abortions in the United States are on minorities, and 40 percent of all prisoners are African Americans. Yes, women are now able to succeed in almost any occupation men used to hold a monopoly on, but women still only make 77 cents for every dollar a man makes. Most people have the freedom to worship as they please, but any Muslim appointed to a high government position will soon have to resign because of false allegations that they have associated with terrorist groups. With prejudice, the work is never done.

With as much work as must be done on the bigotry that has been targeted, there is a problem with speaking of racism, or sexism or whatever other focus one has. For every prejudice our society focuses on and tries to wipe out, a hundred are ignored and five more are created. Yes, our society has made great strides in sexism, but assumptions are publicly made daily about the poor who receive welfare—that they are lazy, are cheating the system, are taking advantage of the government. Racism has changed and in some ways gone underground, but social workers can manipulate and control the lives of the mentally ill because the mentally ill have been deemed unable to care for themselves, even when they are not under a court-ordered commitment. People are allowed to worship as they please, but people who have pot for their own use are thrown into prison, although they have harmed no one—not even themselves.

The list of prejudices go on and on—the homeless are treated like criminals for not having a place to sleep, an immigrant is treated like an idiot for having an accent, someone who criticizes democracy or capitalism is held at arm’s length, distrusted, a person over 80 is treated as unable to make their own life decisions. Why is this? Not because we haven’t been taught about tolerance. Simply because our teaching of tolerance has been limited to only a few categories. Thus, we who are white males feel guilty at just glancing at a young black man, but we can openly speak hatred against the same man if we find out he is homeless and speaks with an African accent.

The issue is not racism, or sexism or any other -ism of limited scope. Our prejudice is against those who are unlike ourselves—of any other culture that is unfamiliar and uncomfortable. When one person or a group of people make a values decision that is different than one we would make—whether or not it would hurt another—that person is wrong and potentially dangerous. The different are not allowed to rule the society, because they will not uphold the cultural standards, whatever they may be. No matter how we try to attack bigotry, as long as we limit it to just a few issues, we will always fall behind our own unknown prejudices. I believe that our problem is not racism or homophobia—rather it is monoculturalism. The limitation of the “acceptable life” to only a few choices.

Our problem is not simply a lack of education. Certainly Americans would be more tolerant if they learned more about cultures, religions, and a variety of cultural mores and habits. But knowledge is not the answer to a monocultural outlook. The prejudice against women persisted for centuries because there was a mutual agreement between the sexes to not interfere with each other’s way of life, mores and areas of influence. Only when they began to live as equals, interfering with each other’s lives was there the beginning of understanding and a breaking down of the wall of sexism. The prejudice against African Americans persisted (and will continue to persist) as long as there is separation in neighborhoods, schools and cultural blocks. Only when there is a free and equal mixing between races will understanding and true hope come about.

And we cannot solve monoculturalism by just mashing neighborhoods together, because in the war of culture, the more dominant culture will always win, simply because they have more resources. The dominant culture will be quite "rational" when they dismantle the cultural values and visions of the non-dominant cultures.  And if rationality does not work, then brute force always does.  A homeless camp on private property, although neat and orderly, will be dismantled and all possessions stolen by a local government.  A neighborhood association will fine a house that holds to a different cultural standard from the houses around it.

I believe that the answer to monoculturalism is living in other cultures, being humble in a situation apart from that which we grew up. When I visited India, after living my whole life in Southern California, I was confronted and ashamed by some of the things I did which was acceptable in my own society. I learned that not only were different races, religions and languages acceptable, but so were different ways of thought. When I began to live among the poor, I learned that there was much that I had an instant revulsion to—dumpster diving, for one—that was not only acceptable, but actually a moral benefit to society.  We who are a part of a dominant culture need to live as a minority culture to understand how to recognize and protect minority cultures.

Only if we live humbly among different cultures will we learn to accept other cultures. Only if we are forced to confront our prejudices face to face with those who we appreciate but run in the face of our prejudices will we change.

A Biblical Guide to Privilege

I've been thinking about the controversy stirred up by the acquittal of George Zimmerman this last week.  I don't care much about George Zimmerman nor the court system, but I am interested in how we respond to the discussion of race and privilege.

Let's face it, we live in a white culture in which whiteness, maleness, and a certain income level is the "norm" and everyone else has to prove themselves in order to make that norm.  If we can't prove ourselves, then we are suspect and worthy of fear and oppression.

The funny thing is how many people deny this is true.

Let's face it, if you are reading this blog, the likelihood is that you are privileged in some area.  And the Bible has something to say to you.

Who are the privileged?
Those who have greater resources than anyone around them, whether through birth or fate or labor. Resources could include opportunities in wealth, education, prestige, relationship, and esteem through race, sex, social class, or any other level of status as determined by society. We should remember that we are all privileged in some way, so these commands apply to all of us in some areas of our lives. If we live in the United States, even if we are among the poorest who live here, we are most likely privileged above the majority of the rest of the world.

If you have two coats and another has none, you are privileged.
If you are able to be politically active and another is not, you are privileged.
If you have supportive relationships and another does not, you are privileged.
If you have a job and another does not, you are privileged.
If you have excess time or money and another does not, you are privileged.
If you have peace when you go to sleep at night and another does not, you are privileged.
If you have clean drinking water and another does not, you are privileged.
If you never have to worry about racial injustice and another does, you are privileged.
If you belong to the majority religion of your culture or nation, you are privileged.

We are not all privileged in the same way.  For some, an area of privilege (for example, education) can erase much (not all) of the oppression an area of lowliness (such as race) gives us.   On the other hand, an area of oppression (such as poverty) could erase much benefit we have obtained some an area of privilege (such as a privileged race or sex).

But if we have an income above the poverty line in the U.S., or are educated, or have a solid social network then we have at least some areas of privilege and we need to pay attention to these following teachings of the Bible:

a. Do not boast about your privilege.
“Thus says the LORD, "Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things," declares the LORD.” Jeremiah 9:23-24

b. Do not use your privilege for primarily your own benefit.
But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full. Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.Luke 6:24-26
"The land of a rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning to himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?' Then he said, 'This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry."' But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?' So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." Luke 12:16-21

c. Use what privilege and resources you have to benefit the oppressed.
We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth. I John 3:16-18

d. Surrender your material resources to benefit those who are needy.
Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Luke 12:33-34

e. Set aside some of your privilege, so that God might raise you up.
When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him, and he who invited you both will come and say to you, 'Give your place to this man,' and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place. But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, 'Friend, move up higher'; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." Luke 14:8-11

f. Use your privilege to make friends with the oppressed, God’s chosen, so that they might welcome you into God’s dwelling.
And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the wealth of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they will receive you into the eternal dwellings. Luke 16:9

g. Welcome the oppressed into the benefits of your privilege.
And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment. But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous." Luke 14:12-14

h. Use your privilege to create a context of justice for the needy and oppressed.
Vindicate the weak and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and destitute. Rescue the weak and needy; Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked. Psalm 82:3-4

i. Pay your workers their full wages on time.
Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. James 5:4

j. Do not cause those who are under your authority to be angry, but be at peace with all in as much as you are able.
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger. Ephesians 6:4

k. Cheat no one, nor work for a company that cheats anyone of their wages. If you do cheat anyone of their meager resources, pay them back four times as much.
Do not defraud. Mark 10:19
Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, "Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much." And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. Luke 19:8-9

l. Repent of your sins—especially your misuse of your privilege— with tears.
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! James 5:1-3

m. Welcome the opportunity to be oppressed yourself, for then you will be of God’s people.
Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:11-12

n. Don’t worry if you become needy through obedience to God’s commands, for God will provide for all your needs if you seek His righteousness first.
Do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing…. And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life's span? If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters? But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Luke 12:22-23, 25-26, 31

o. If you have taken advantage of all of your privilege for your own benefit, then God will give you a second life in order to punish you.
And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man's table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.' But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.’ Luke 16:20-25