In the Stories we tell children Pt. deux

We are at the beginning of a new decade. The old one was full of so much joy and growth yet marred by so much destruction and death.

I attempted to ring in my New Year on a grand note, only to have the moments of anticipation climax into the sad realization someone had absconded with my bottle of Nectar Imperial! Though upset, I eventually got over it (days later) and poured myself into my work and my students. My work can be quite consuming at times, and like most American jobs, those who do the most work receive the least pay. Discontent with quite a few things in my life, it seemed like I started 2010 with my shoes on the wrong feet.

Then there were earthquakes.

As the ground shifted in Haiti, and men, women, and children struggled in vain to escape the buildings collapsing around them, there was another earthquake in the States. Its aftershock could be felt around the world, as sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity erupted from the mouths of the visible.

A "reporter" stood to continuously ask a man about the destruction and horror he experienced as he held his dead child in his arms.

Somewhere on the steps of a Grand Central Station escalator was a remark about how Haitians will come to the US as the Mexicans have.

Evangelist Pat Robertson said that the earthquake was God's way of punishing the Haitians for making a pact with the devil.

Silly me, I thought the Haitians had a revolution to remove the devils! (CJ)

All of these things reminded me why I do the work that I do and how grateful I should be for the opportunity to teach.

Ignorance is not bliss. It is evil, and more often than not its seed is planted in childhood. What is most hurtful about the comments and behaviors I've witnessed is that they are repeated and believed by my own.

The idea that a loving God would punish an already suffering and impoverished population because of the practice of Vodun is absurd. The fact that there are black people in the United States who think this is even more absurd when just a few days ago you made a meal of black eyed peas, collard greens, and pork without thinking about why.

The African experience with religion has always been syncretic. Vodun is no exception. Of course, I don't expect everyone to understand this, when they may have used "Haitian" or "African" as a disparaging term. I don't expect America to give up their obsession with voyeurism when it comes to black people and poverty. Watching the despair on a 42 inch flat screen is as close as many want to get.

But it doesn't have to be that way. Our generation has witnessed many defining moments. What will we tell our children? That we stood idly by with our blackberries in our condos while children die of thirst? Will you still stand in your church recalling your refusal to help other human beings because you believed in some hollywood invention? Or will you stand up for what is right?

Its a new decade. Make your meaning clear.

-N

http://www.supportunicef.org/site/pp.asp?c=9fLEJSOALpE&b=1023561

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34835478/ns/world_news-haiti_earthquake/