Skin Color Should Not Matter, But it Does

Skin Color Should Not Matter, But it Does

It is 2020: a pretty modern year on paper, and it is Black history month in the United States; we are a little over half way through it (today is Sunday the 16th), and these things matter to me. The fact that skin color, a large indicator of culture and identity, matters so much. Still. We humans have a lot of quirks that we are trying to get past, maybe, to overcome.

Why do I care? Because I consider myself somewhat of a historian, and historically significant as a chronicler or not,  I do care, so I write this for a few reasons. I write this to understand both myself and the subject addressed. I also care about justice, fairness, the "correct", the "good", if there is such a Plutonian concept. Skin color, pigmentation, should not matter as much as it does in 2020.

But it still does.

Examples?

I read reports at work about White Extremist movements around the world. Ugh.

I see that the Roast of Inside the NBA hosts in the middle of the All-Star weekend for Shaquille O'Neal, Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkely is replete with racial identity, black and white. Many racially based comments and jokes. It is meant to be funny, but underlining the humor is the sadness of racial identity, and therefore the existence of discrimination.

I read and re-learn about white farmers in Zimbabwe, former Rhodesia, who are violently expelled from their homes because of their skin color, which happens to be white.

In the last five or six years in America, we had the protests and riots of Ferguson, Missouri, Baltimore, and many other places dealing with law enforcement relations with people of color, blacks, or African-Americans in particular. African-Americans felt oppressed by men and women in uniform of all color.

Under the last two presidents of the United States since 2008, we have been talking about racial unity, accomplishments, divisiveness more than ever. 12 years of new racial polemic and possibility.

But we still cannot get past it, dismiss it or overcome the pigmentation problems.

Does it affect me personally? Yes, I am American and human, no matter my skin color.

As a citizen, patriotic and trying to do my part for my republic, I want to celebrate people of all races, but foremost the human race. Regardless of creed, language, socio-economic status. I want us to be one.

But I feel like we can't. Yet.

Do I suffer the fear of being black and getting pulled over? No, I am a white man.

Does this give me white privilege? To a certain degree I enjoy this, or I am privileged by this skin color, by less fear while driving, I admit. Is this right? Certainly not. It is not fair to others, not fair to society.

When will we look past the divisions and barriers and labels and jokes of race? White, black, brown, and on...

Probably never, the way we keep making the jokes, the stereotypes, the unfair claims of injustice which might be true in many cases...

Poverty of the bank account, the thinking mind, and the popular will continue to perpetuate the racism and racial polarities that vex us.

Race and racism vex us.

We can joke about it at NBA roasts, but the language and stinking thinking continues. He has a "black name". He has a "white name." Haha, laugh it up. Painful but true. Funny but true.

Skin color should not matter, but it does.

Skin color should not matter, but it does.

Skin color should not matter, but it does.

Skin color should not matter, but it does.

I will not eat green eggs and ham, Sam-I-am.