Profiles in Courage
Okay, getting up on my soapbox here, so stay with me, people.
If you encountered the news this week, you probably know Rosa Parks died. And you probably know she's famous for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, and you probably think, okay, yeah, that's pretty cool I guess for that time and place. Good for her. Whatever.
Stop for a minute, though. Think about what she did. She challenged the system, not by writing a letter or donating some money or walking in a protest with a bunch of other people (at least not at first). Think about what it was like to sit in that seat with a white man standing over her demanding she move. Think about the fact that she'd worked all day long, and she was tired, and honestly, it probably would have been easier to give in and get up and move to the back of the bus. But she didn't. She had enough of the injustice, the inequality, the utter bullshit that lies at the heart of racism. She got arrested for it, and then she sparked a movement that we're still feeling the aftershocks of today.
But we've still got a long way to go. For example, the Houston Better Business Bureau is investigating whether one of its member companies left a blatantly racist message on a customer's phone. A black woman in Houston called the Diamond Glass & Mirror Repair Company about fixing her car's windshield. A few moments later, an employee of Diamond Glass allegedly called the black woman back and left this message: "The windshield replacement won't be able to get to you this morning. A white person called in and wanted a windshield and we do those before we do yours. You need to call somebody else."
What kind of person leaves a message like that? What the hell difference does the color of the woman's skin make? Why does it ever make a difference?
And maybe you're thinking, well, that's Houston, you know how the South/Texas is still. But look around you. I bet you'll see little injustices happening all the time, which brings me back to Rosa Parks. If you think it's wrong, take a stand. Don't be complicit in your silence, don't tolerate racist comments "among friends", don't wait for someone else to come and back you up.
And don't assume that one person can't make a difference.
If you encountered the news this week, you probably know Rosa Parks died. And you probably know she's famous for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, and you probably think, okay, yeah, that's pretty cool I guess for that time and place. Good for her. Whatever.
Stop for a minute, though. Think about what she did. She challenged the system, not by writing a letter or donating some money or walking in a protest with a bunch of other people (at least not at first). Think about what it was like to sit in that seat with a white man standing over her demanding she move. Think about the fact that she'd worked all day long, and she was tired, and honestly, it probably would have been easier to give in and get up and move to the back of the bus. But she didn't. She had enough of the injustice, the inequality, the utter bullshit that lies at the heart of racism. She got arrested for it, and then she sparked a movement that we're still feeling the aftershocks of today.
But we've still got a long way to go. For example, the Houston Better Business Bureau is investigating whether one of its member companies left a blatantly racist message on a customer's phone. A black woman in Houston called the Diamond Glass & Mirror Repair Company about fixing her car's windshield. A few moments later, an employee of Diamond Glass allegedly called the black woman back and left this message: "The windshield replacement won't be able to get to you this morning. A white person called in and wanted a windshield and we do those before we do yours. You need to call somebody else."
What kind of person leaves a message like that? What the hell difference does the color of the woman's skin make? Why does it ever make a difference?
And maybe you're thinking, well, that's Houston, you know how the South/Texas is still. But look around you. I bet you'll see little injustices happening all the time, which brings me back to Rosa Parks. If you think it's wrong, take a stand. Don't be complicit in your silence, don't tolerate racist comments "among friends", don't wait for someone else to come and back you up.
And don't assume that one person can't make a difference.
posted by Delhui at 9:58 PM
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