Can We Talk?

The internet is full of opinions on the peaceful demonstrations of black athletes during our National Anthem. Coaches, owners, fellow athletes, broadcasters, and of course -- politicians are weighing in on the means of the demonstration.

Unfortunately, I'm seeing very little actual  talk about the purpose of the demonstrations -- the unjust treatment of African-Americans by our police forces and justice systems.

Even though I am Asian-American by birth, I have spent my life within the white privileged society and wouldn't be considered anything else except by the strictest white nationalist sects of our society. I think that I am the least Asian looking of my siblings and many people are surprised to hear that I have an Asian mother.
I have no idea of what it is like to be a black man in the United States  (or any other minority, for that matter). For all practical purposes, I am a white, Christian male and have the privileges associated with that standing. I can live were I want (and can afford). I can go where I want without fear of being stopped due to racial profiling. I can shop where I want without raising great suspicion that I'm going to steal something. I'm not suspected of being lazy or of slopping at the government trough (although I am on a government pension). I live in a part of the country that is nearly uninhabited by minorities.

I say all of that to say that I recognize that I am a part of the problem -- at least up to the point that I allow the problem to continue without some sort of dialog and change.

We, as a society, have responded in a typical way. The instinctual response of any accused is to justify our actions or redirect the blame for our actions on the accuser. It takes great character to admit that we may have been wrong; that our action (or inaction) has caused someone harm. Such an admission means that we have to be the ones to change.
As long as we make the demonstration about something other than its initial purpose, we can insist that the victims of this injustice change their method of demonstration while we continue to allow the racially motivated injustices to continue.

There will have to come a time when law enforcement agencies and criminal justice systems have to acknowledge that the statistics are damning and a change is needed. We (the privileged) can be the motivating segment of society to get our elected government officials to listen to the complaints rather than to dismiss them or deflect them so that they go unaddressed.

Kneeling during the Anthem has never been about disrespecting the Flag, our nation, nor anyone that serves our society. It's time we stopped treating it as such and address the real issue.

John <><