It’s time. People in Albany need to get together and talk. About what? All kinds of things. We can talk about differences, but perhaps we should talk about what kinds of things unite us. I honestly believe that many of those things are pretty universal. We want our children to be safe. We want good jobs, or at least keep the jobs we already have. We want race to not play a part in others’ decisions and feelings about us.
There’s a lot that can unite us, rather than divide us.
There is still a lot to disagree with, but that’s beside the point. In Albany, like it or not, race still plays a huge part in politics. There are people of all skin colors who make their decision based on race. Frankly, that’s ridiculous. It’s not just Albany that makes those decisions either, but you’ve got to start somewhere. Why not here?
I still remember the Albany of my childhood. Of course, I have little doubt that the Albany of those days wasn’t as good for many in this community during that time. I’m not stupid. But in those days, Albany had a lot going for it. Then, it went into the toilet. While my recollections may not have been the universal reality for much of Albany’s residents, my question is simple. Why can’t it be?
I’m not talking about revising history, obviously, but working together to turn around reality. We are the masters of our own destiny. We, if we stand together, can put aside issues of skin color and begin to all make decisions based on policy. We can work to heal the wounds of past centuries by listening to one another and respecting one another.
In November of last year, this nation elected it’s first black president. President Obama was elected on a message of hope and change, but change that really counts can’t be legislated. It must start in the hearts and minds of people. It must stir within our soul, like the muse of a poet, and burst forth from our beings fully formed just as Athena burst forth from the head of Zeus. We must be the vehicles for any meaningful change to happen.
Long gone are the days when we could be ignorant of one another. Gone are the days when it was acceptable to pretend that others don’t matter. Gone are the days when we could ram through whatever we want and damn everyone else.
I’m glad those days are gone, because I don’t want anything to do with them.
Instead, I look forward to debates about ideas. I long for a day when we can stand on the courthouse steps and argue policy. I pray for a day when vigorous debate about government is the norm, and ethnic overtones a thing of the past. It can happen. It has happened.
I was in the Navy in 1994, stuck in Virginia during the flood. However, reports I got were heartening. White and black, young and old, all united during our darkest hour. People worked together in neighborhoods, colorblind and class blind. We were one people in those days, so it is possible. It’s past time we bring that back.
This community has real problems. We must work together to get past our own biases to discuss these problems rationally. It can’t be about race, but ideas. It’s can’t be about anything but ideas.
It’s not hopeless. Dr. King had a dream. So do I.
