A Blown Opportunity For A Valuable Lesson

What are teachers supposed to say to their students about what happened in Buffalo?  I suppose it depends on where they live.  For those who live in red states, they are hamstrung about how they can discuss the massacre thanks to GQP/Rethuglican legislators who don’t want the white kids to feel “uncomfortable.” 

I just read an article by NBC in which a teacher in TX was interviewed (URL at end).  The teacher has to provide more than one perspective of what happened: some would say the killings were racially motivated; some would say the shooter was just trying to defend his beliefs.  Some might say whatever blah de blah blah.  It’s absolutely a blown opportunity for a valuable teaching lesson because white male legislators are afraid the truth will be taught.

I don’t know if this teacher will leave the profession at the end of the year because of the restrictions placed on educators by red legislators.  I wouldn’t blame her if she did.  If I was her, I’d take my teaching degree and GTFO of TX and go to a more enlightened state, one that isn’t terrified of discussing our violent past.

Fear is what caused the red states to react the way they have been.  White male supremacists in and out of government are scared to death they’re losing control.  Since before the US was a country, white males have been in charge of everything and anyone “other”: Native Americans, black slaves, women, and non-WASPs. 

They were afraid of being replaced when Catholics and Jewish people immigrated to the US before the Civil War.  Then they were afraid when Chinese and Japanese immigrants came to the West Coast to work on their railroads.  Instead of going back home, as the white men desired, these Asian immigrants stayed and voila!  Purity in danger again.  Then they were alarmed by the slaves being freed and tried to control being “replaced” with all sorts of Jim Crow laws. 

After that?  Well, then blacks began to legally acquire civil rights.  If that wasn’t bad enough, here came the women!  Women got the vote and steadily gained independence from the misogynistic men.  Meanwhile, more civil rights were passed for people of color and women.  Even “handicapped” people began to receive “equal” rights.

And then: a black President!  It doesn’t matter that former President Barack Obama is one of the best Presidents ever.  That he is black and won by large numbers was a huge affront to white supremacists.  Their heads are still in the “bad” old days, when a person of color was considered property and was considered no better than a beast.

For ages, white supremacists have believed there was a conspiracy to replace them through inter-marriage with people of color and different religions.  Throughout the years of this country, there have been times when their rage has spilled into violence and killings, murders.  The newest surge came with President Obama’s presidency. 

Another reason violent white supremacy keeps rearing their vicious, ignorant heads is because our history has been white washed from the beginning.  I was in the school system from 1960-73.  Not once did I learn anything about racial inequality and injustice in this country.  Oh, it existed elsewhere in the world, all right, but not in pure, perfect America.

Hatred and ignorance amongst voters led to a marginal victory by TFG (the former guy), surely the worst President ever.  He was worse than any of our inadequate or corrupt leaders but he sure did cater to those hate groups, his “base.”  He legitimized the actions of groups like the Proud Boys, Q-Anon followers, neo-Nazis and other hate groups.

All of that poison led to the coup attempt at the Capitol January 6, 2021.

Even though TFG is gone, his followers aren’t.  His base continues to elect Q-Anon, supremacist, conspiracy-addled and thuggish candidates to office in the House, the Senate, local & state governments and even school boards.  Some of these vile people have openly advocated for violence against Democrats and “others”, especially immigrants of color.

Because their behavior is openly condoned, white shooters like that kid in Buffalo are publishing crazy untrue manifestos, grabbing their automatics and shooting up as many “other” people as they can get away with: blacks, Muslims, Jews, Asian, gays.

The Rethuglicans are quick to deny, deflect and cast blame.  They say it’s not the gun that kills, it’s the mentally afflicted shooter.  Note:  not a white supremacist, just deranged.  Besides, the fault lies with the immigrants, doesn’t it?

Thoughts and prayers, that’s the ticket.

The House passed a bill that would prevent domestic terrorism.  The Democrats have a majority there so it passed 222-203.  Only one of the red legislators crossed party lines to vote in favor, and that was Rep. Adam Kinzinger.

It’ll be a different story in the Senate which is divided between the parties.  If all the Democrats voted together, Vice President Harris could break the tie.  The bill would pass the Senate.  No GQP/Rethug will cross the aisle because their leader (Mitch McConnell)’s agenda would be to block anything the Democrats want to pass.  There are at least 2 DINOs (Democrats In Name Only) in the Senate, Joe Manchin of WV and Krysten Sinema of AZ, who will vote against it.

And so, we just spin our wheels while the red legislators continue dismantling our fundamental rights.  We won’t be a democracy anymore, and that would be fine with the white supremacists and legislators who believe democracy and freedom don’t go together anymore.

I love my country.  I believe that freedom and democracy are twined together.  I don't want to lose that, especially because I know we can do better.

People, don’t fear examining our history because it’s painful, shameful and “uncomfortable”.  Sometimes you get a cut and although it scabs, there’s redness under it.  Maybe you can see pus.  How can you let the infection out if you don’t remove the scab?  We need to do that with our violent past.

Most of all, we need to vote.

This is the URL to the article I read.  I know the html language to create a link but it doesn’t seem to work here anymore. 

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/buffalo-shooting-teachers-racism-laws-rcna29500?cid=eml_nbn_20220519&user_email=13660bfeb26f12d44f84b122ca5ed8d5f1acd1ca439a25e7fe835ee487c11d11&%243p=e_sailthru&_branch_match_id=897534115306322423&utm_medium=Email%20Sailthru&_branch_referrer=H4sIAAAAAAAAAzWO7WrEIBBFn8b%2By4ejZpPCUgplXyOMOm5kjQka8fXrQgsDcziXGe52XWf%2BHIaoTaSaezzPPvj4GsT5xUCK805rRh%2BuLZWPJo7knz5iWEsK9%2B19zMQ3g0ebWmv%2F%2F8YcezNvbKvk7o90cQ7D0eXtOC4fn91FaDZKuUtofN67gLWxiQiLGkcmHsZbJn5oD2vUcYURYFR8YTCVTGmlvVVrORfTNGpHGibHwUrpZqk5gEFFdrbKcTSWG5RiQVB0czQLRSTnm