to a defendant or a family member of a
defendant in the Hennepin Cty court system for whom English may not be a
first language and America might not be a first culture, the image of a
lynching displayed in a courthouse might mean something quite different than
it would someone born and raised here. As Minneapolis is home to the Center
for Victims of Torture and the American Refugee Committee, this scenario is
not as remote as it may seem.
Speaking as one who has traveled extensively, I must say that nothing is farther from the truth. The world is long aware of America's racist history, more particularly, of its continuing, however disguised romance of the notion of supremacy. It is flagrantly flaunted around the world in the form of "foreign policy", supported primarily by the iexportation of disgust, deceit, and implements of destruction. Yes, the world knows.
The question is not simply whether or not the painting sparked a rennasaince of grieviances toward racist attitudes, nor is it any longer whom is more racist than the other, a theme to which the picture cannot subscribe. It is however and indication of the depth, or lack of depth, associated with the clandestine atmosphere surrounding rascism, and a pretty good indicator of how volatile a matter the subject is. The real question is what should be done because of it? Let's bring it to the center, deal with it for what it is, and decide to get on with the business of building lives, irrespective of skin color, origin, gender, or perception.
It is time that we realize that the truth of existence is not captive in the views of others, rather it is the prisons that we build in our minds based on the actions or reactions of other filtering into our perceptions of self. We should all learn from our history and carve out those elements that have lead us to perceive one another as "different, therefore, bad". There is good and bad in all. But by learning from past mistakes, we can project ourselve around the obstacles presented in the baggage that comes with misplaced emotions. Spend your energies on your vision, as long as that vision reflects you, and is not subject to anothers perception. When we have learned that this is the path traveled to success, we will all attain it. It does not matter what others think of you unless you concede to their thoughts, perceptions and views rather than your own. I submit to you however that you cannot get here without learning the pitfalls and mistakes of your past. Remember that God has given to no one any more than he has given to you. What will you do with yours?/
Robert Anderson
Field Regina
South Minneapolis.
