America
needs a movement that resists hate.
I’m
thankful that this past weekend no one was killed while worshiping in a
synagogue, and no one received a pipe bomb in the mail. Despite this respite I
doubt that many believe that these acts of hate won’t happen again.
I
spent the weekend watching “The Hate U Give” at a movie theater in Mounds View,
attending the Tina Smith/Karin Housley debate at the Fitzgerald Theater and
preaching how the purpose of the church is to develop 2G disciples.
The
movie was intense and instructive. Starr Carter, brilliantly played by Amandla
Stenberg, was a 16 year old girl growing up in a poor African American neighborhood
called Garden Heights. The neighborhood
reminded me of the South Side of Chicago where I lived and organized for a
brief time and visited on a recent trip.
Starr attended an affluent, predominantly white private school,
Williamson Prep. While traveling in a car with a long-time friend, Khalil, the
police pulled over the car. What eventually happened was no surprise. The white
police officer told Khalil to get out of the car. The police office eventually shot
and killed Khalil as Khalil reached into the car to get a hair brush.
The
rest of the movie showed how Starr’ family, the people of Garden Heights, the
criminal justice system and the whites attending Williamson Prep responded to
the killing. This was a more than a “white
officer kills unarmed black man in a traffic stop, so let’s beat up on the
police and change the criminal justice system” story. One of the best parts of the movie was when Starr’s
uncle, an African American police officer, shared with Starr how the officer
could come to the decision to fire the fatal shots. Another plot line of how a gang and its
leader controlled the neighborhood revealed how drugs and money suppressed the
people of Garden Heights. Hate was a central character in the movie. Not surprisingly it was put at bay at the end
of the movie, but no one naively would think that it wouldn’t come out of the
shadows again.
The
debate between Smith and Housley was conducted civilly and mostly without
rancor. People wanting to know where
each stood on the issues got their wish.
Both candidates couldn’t help
touch on the canards that their political parties have encouraged them to share.
Smith shared that Housley’s views on health care wouldn’t help people with pre-existing
conditions; Housley let slip that Smith favored open borders. Fortunately these “gotcha points” were only
shared at the edges of the debate.
As
the people of the United States prepare to vote, I’m guessing most will be glad
that the election will soon be over. We can go back to watching commercials
that sell products and not create ugly stereotypes about people/political
candidates. If asked, what percentage of
Americans would want another month of political commercials? I'm guessing less than one in ten. I’m all for free speech, but I don’t think the
authors of the 1st Amendment could imagine such repetitive
vitriol. I’m waiting for leaders to
develop a system of campaigning that leaves the country in a better place.
Which
brings me back to the premise of this blog—that America needs a movement
against hate. Time magazine printed a cover called “Beyond Hate” and seven articles
that shared important perspectives on moving beyond hate. I read every article. Nancy Gibbs wrote an article that resonated
with me the most. http://time.com/5441420/gibbs-beyond-hate/ The whole piece is
worth reading. The following five sentences
articulated her view:
“We’re
having a master class on hate because we’ve no choice; it has moved from the
part of our character we work hardest to suppress to the part we can least
afford to ignore. Hate slipped its bonds
and runs loose, through our politics, platforms, press, private
encounters. And the further it travels,
the stronger it grows. People unaccustomed
to despising anyone ever, find themselves so frightened or appalled by what
they see across the divide that they are prepared to fight it hand to
hand. Calls for civility are scorned as
weak, a form of unilateral disarmament.”
A
week ago yesterday I shared in a sermon the difference between being a friend
and being part of a tribe. (The sermon can be viewed at: https://vimeo.com/297704833) I defined a tribe as a commitment to an idea
that is more important than anything else. The relationship to others in the
tribe is based on a view and not a complete relationships. Tribes become scary when they attack (often
with hate) those who disagree with the views.
I
don’t know what a movement that resists hate looks like—but America is ready for
one.
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