Enough

I have lived in rural or semi-rural parts of California for most of my 58+ years. I’ve been privileged to live in some beautiful places and in some wonderful communities. I’ve also been privileged to have been born white and male.

Privilege is an interesting concept - and I know that some of my friends would dismiss the notion that being a white male has provided me (or them) with any advantage. But I think it’s impossible to know what hasn’t happened to me because of my gender or the color of my skin. Which is why empathy is so important. And which is why I find the current social and political conditions in the United States so troubling.

On my walk this morning, I remembered the 2020 song by Tyler Childers, “Long, Violent History.” The lyrics, written after the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, could equally apply to the violence playing out in the streets of Minneapolis (and other U.S. cities) this weekend.

It's the worst that it's been since the last time it happened

It's happening again right in front of our eyes

There's updated footage, wild speculation

Tall tales and hearsay and absolute lies

Been passed off as factual when actually, the actual

Causes they're awkwardly blockin' the way

Keeping us all from enjoyin' our evening

Shoving it's roots through the screens in our face

Now, what would you get if you heard my opinion

Conjecturin' on matters that I ain't never dreamed

In all my born days as a white boy from Hickman

Based on the way that the world's been to mе

It's called me belligеrent, it's took me for ignorant

But it ain't never once made me scared just to be

Could you imagine just constantly worryin'

Kickin' and fightin', beggin' to breathe

How many boys could they haul off this mountain

Shoot full of holes, cuffed, and laid in the streets

'Til we come in to town in a stark ravin' anger

Looking for answers and armed to the teeth

30 aught sixes, papaw's old pistol

How many, you reckon, would it be, four or five?

Oh, would that be the start of a long, violent history

Of tuckin' our tails as we try to abide?

Oh, would that be the start of a long, violent history

Of tuckin' our tails as we try to abide?

For me, Childer’s video liner notes about the song (and his fans’ reaction to it) is equally eloquent - and important. You can view it here.

Over the past several years, I have felt homeless politically. The modern Republican Party has never felt like a comfortable fit for me; lately, neither has the modern Democratic Party. Over the last three presidential elections, I’ve voted for what seemed to be the least bad option. I should note here that I’ve never voted for Donald Trump.

Yesterday, I watched the events in Minneapolis with horror . I should say up front that I strongly disagree with the federal government’s tactics around detaining illegal immigrants, which seem designed to instill as much fear and inhumanity as possible. I see echoes of the Roosevelt administration’s internment of Japanese Americans during World War 2, with extra helpings of violence and cruelty.

The shooting deaths of Renee Good and now Alex Pretti - US citizens who were exercising rights guaranteed by our Constitution - cross a dangerous line for me. Somehow, the current administration has decided that dehumanizing citizens who disagree with its policies and tactics is what the majority of us want.

I have seen videos of both shootings, and have drawn my own conclusions. I understand that others may see the same footage and come to a different perspective. What concerns me most, however, is that the administration does not seem interested in an independent investigation of either death. It’s enough, it seems, that these individuals were protesting the administration’s policies. In other words, they got what they deserved.

Disagreements have always been part of our political discourse. Through most of our history, we’ve settled these disagreements in the voting booth - and just as importantly, in my mind, through conversations with our neighbors. We seem to have lost our way at present - or at least our current leaders have lost their way. I believe in due process and the rule of law - for all people, regardless of their heritage, their skin color, their gender - or their immigration status.

And so as I come back to the idea of my privilege, I do know that writing these words at the picnic table by my fire pit does not carry the same risk that others are facing in protesting the administration’s policies. I probably risk losing some friendships, but I can live with that. I’ve had enough - I need to speak out.