God grant me Serenity... Courage... Wisdom

KP recently wrote a blog post that discussed recent trends toward whitewashing literature, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in particular.  While apparently intended to promote the use of politically correct language, the actual effect is a profound invalidation of the history, hurts, and memories of those who have been oppressed.  To demonstrate... a quote, a story, some philosophizing, and a benediction:

"We should not move toward colour-blindness as an American ideal, we should move toward colour-consciousness, which allows us to talk about race in a way that makes it complex, serious, nuanced, and something that we all want to talk about instead of something that makes us defensive and uncomfortable." - Diane Harriford

I was talking this evening with a little caucasian girl who had been walking through Point Douglas with myself and some others, inviting people from the predominantly Aboriginal community to a barbecue.  I asked if she had the opportunity to get to know anyone a little better.

"Yeah!" she said.  "I saw Zoe" (a child about her age whom both of us know).  I nodded, and she went on, trying to describe the girl to ensure we were on the same page, "You know... the brown-ish one."  It was said with matter-of-fact respect, a hint of appreciation, and no trace of prejudice.
"Aw, Zoe... I wish I had seen her too.  I really like her," I said.
"Yeah.  I like her too." was her quiet reply.  We sat in silence for a moment, thinking fondly about our mutual 'brown-ish' 9 year-old friend.

I'm not brown-ish.  Sometimes I wish I was.  Because sometimes I cringe when I see my reflection in the mirror - when I recognize my part in perpetuating injustice.  We must not - indeed we cannot (though we try very hard to pretend to) - blind ourselves to colour.  Sometimes it is only the children who are honest enough to admit that they notice... we need to allow them to remind us how to be appreciative of difference instead of afraid of offending.

Insofar as past generations were indicted for discrimination through the use of annihilation, assimilation, and segregation, today's generation will be indicted for racial discrimination as we latently and overtly attempt to eradicate racial diversity by pretending or assuming its outdated irrelevance.  Like trying to remove a scar with a potato peeler, we are only trying to convince ourselves that we are as virtuous as we desperately wish we were.  We traded honesty for hegemony in hope that our memories would be erased; now we find ourselves stuck in our self-dug pit of shame, denial, and self-deception.  Many times, I think that whitewashing, instead of being motivated by respect and appreciation for the oppressed persons, is driven by the compulsion of the oppressors to assuage their nagging sense of self-loathing.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like white-washed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness" (Matthew 23:27).

A coat of paint won't cover the stink; you can only kill a weed if you pull it out at the very root." (Jenni's paraphrase)

God, grant us the serenity to look in the mirror, accepting both the beauty and the blemishes in our history which we cannot change;

The courage to ask the elephant in the room for the first dance, resting in the tension between the apparent contradictions that are the epitome of paradox;

And the wisdom we need to proceed with humility, compassion, humour, and hope. 

(credit where credit is due)