Now that I have your attention................. I believe that every single one of us can make a difference in this world. I believe these differences can be big and small and can be made as often as one attempts to do so. Im not sure how many of you will understand this but please let me try to expand upon this.
Being a baby of the sixties and raised in the deep south, I have very emotional and first hand experiences with the civil rights movements. Segregation was "a part of life" and very prevalent at this time and place. Although our family was very decent to mankind and fair with compensation, it was a "norm" to think that the color of one's skin made them in a different class of people.
From the beginning of my life, I never understood this and spoke out against it even as a toddler. It hurt me to think that groups of people could impose upon us their tainted views of a harsh society and that people went along with it to "fit in". I would not let them teach me to hate. That was very brave for a little girl.
For a white person to think the way I did in the deep south was certainly not the norm. People made prejudice jokes all of the time without thinking once that it wasn't right..... especially when almost everyone made the jokes or thought it was funny. I refused to be taught that this slight to humanity was OK because everyone that I came in contact with thought it was OK. The "n" word still turns my guts inside out!!!!
I was most certainly "in the dog house" when I spoke out many times against vigilante prejudices. Words cannot even convey the "norms" at this time and how even "upstanding" and popular individuals participated in the prejudices. As time went on and changes were made by very brave people to make a difference in an oppressed society, segregation began to be abolished by laws.
Times began to lighten up about the violence towards colored people but the jokes continued. People didn't see a problem with laughing and joking about it. after all, it was just a joke right?
I didn't find them funny. It seemed the entire planet did. It hurt me to allow it. I also found that some people laughed and participated in these jokes not necessarily because they thought it was funny, but because it was what the majority was doing and no one wanted to be an outcast. As unpopular as it was for the time, I still took a hard position that I would not participate in any sort of prejudice activity..... including something as small as "joking". Many times I was an outcast which put me in the "dog house" for speaking against the majority..... many were friends and respected people.
My senior year in high school on my way to school one beautiful sunny morning (in the MID EIGHTIES!!!!!) a smart young innocent black man was hung in the downtown square for all of us to see during our morning commute for no other reason but hate. I shutter at this thought which brings tears to my eyes now when I think back at the horror. This was just a few blocks from my high school.
Stricken with disgust with humanity and deeply saddened, I made a VOW to myself at that moment that I would forever "speak my peace" (my sanctity) against society wrong doings and inappropriate joking and that I would continue to put myself in the dog house to speak out so that hopefully, once in a while, I would make a difference to humanity.
A few of you may be making a connection to the correlation. Still others are thinking.... "so what does this have to do with Fruit loop joking on the talk to Joe page"?
The jokes themselves are insignificant. The act of the joking allows for a tainted concept of another deep issue for me.... Infidelity and the collapse of family. It just so happened that the fruit loop joke (which was actually pretty tame compared to many other "sexual" jokes on this site made repeatedly by a few that are considered the majority) was a catalyst for me to speak out.
continued to next post.........
