A Change Is Gonna Come

Warning, this post contains words that some people may find offence. Actually, I hope there are words everyone finds offensive. I’m not talking about the ones my wife uses when someone cuts her off. I’m talking about the really bad ones.

 

I started this post when I saw someone picking up after their dog and it made me realize that when I was a kid that was something I never saw. Owners just let their dogs crap on anyone’s lawn and off they went. Nowadays there is a social stigma to doing that. Which isn’t to say it still doesn’t happen but it’s much more rare. The thing that has changed it is time. What was once acceptable isn’t so much anymore.  This got me thinking about some of the things that were socially acceptable only 10, 20 or 30 years ago.

When I was little, Brazil nuts were called nigger toes. And when you eenie meeny miny mo’d, it wasn’t a tiger you were catching by the toe. I look back now and I’m horrified that I would casually use that word. I didn’t do it out of hate, I did it out of ignorance. The same with faggot. I should have known better. I figure skated for many years and as a result was called a fag many times. I would defend myself as if it was something horrible to disassociate from. Yet, I would also tell jokes that used the word as a punchline. Again, ignorance. I guess I got some of it from my dad. I consider him an Archie Bunker racist. He thought he was being open-minded by saying things like “There’s this guy at work, he’s Italian but he’s a really hard worker”. When we got new neighbours he said “They’re black but they’re really nice!”. Regardless, I grew up believing stereotypes and using improper words, all the while thinking I was open minded and not behaving in a racist or inappropriate manner. What changed was that as I got older, I spent more time with people of different cultures and became aware of gay people in my life. My kindergarten class photo is whiter than Wonder Bread. In contrast, our kids class photos looked like daycare at the UN. I don’t remember when I stopped using the N word or other derogatory terms. It just happened. Over time the behaviour just became unacceptable.

That is as far as that post got. I wasn’t sure what to write next so I just parked it in my draft folder. That was until the US election results.

Last night’s US  election results were a surprise but I guess they shouldn’t have been.  I get it. People’s lives may not be what they had hoped for and they need to put the blame somewhere. Add to that a wave of misinformation that is at times impossible to know what is and isn’t truth. I’m also a little suspicious that the trend of home schooling could also be a factor. However, my point of view is skewed. I live in Toronto, one of the most multicultural cities in the world but I do see how things differ when I travel to other less diverse places. Smaller towns and communities where immigration hasn’t been as prevalent. Places where the march of time has moved a little slower.  The election didn’t change anybody’s mind. It just allowed some people with olde timey beliefs to feel free to speak openly. It’s going to take a while for change but there is hope. If you only count the votes from last night for people ages 18-25, the Democrats would have won 504 to 23. As one candidate would say, that’s huuuuge.There is a wave of change coming. I’m not sure I’ll see it in my lifetime but then again I saw the first black president and I was born the year the Voting Rights Act was signed, removing the obstacles that prevented many minorities from even voting.  With the overwhelming uncertainty of last night’s result, it’s a small beam of light I choose to stand under.

As a great philosopher once said “I believe the children are our future, teach then well and let them lead the way”. We just need to do our part to teach them well.