This month, our book club read "The Fire Next Time" by James Baldwin.
Although, his writing was hard for me to read.... his writing is quite wordy and I had a hard time not feeling defensive as I felt the anger behind his words.... we had a fabulous discussion as a result!
I like to think we as a nation, since the time that James Baldwin wrote this essay, have made great strides to steer away from discrimination of all kinds, and, with specific regard to this book, racial discrimination. However, in listening to the discussion which ensued, hearing about the experiences that two of the women in our group have had to go through - even just this week (?!?!) - I come to the conclusion that we still have so far to go.
There is no way possible for me to walk in the footsteps of black Americans. Period.
But I hope that there is some progress with my generation and the generation I am helping to create that we will continue the dialogue. To be honest and listen to each other, maintain respect for each other, and walk beside each other until we have arrived to exactly where we need to be.
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i always think that if everybody would be more honest with how they think/feel, only react to what is relevant and not dwell on past hurts or worry about future ones, things would be a lot smoother. i think a lot of feelings get hurt unnecessarily by assumptions & jumping to incorrect conclusions. i also think that a lot of times when people complain that they are not being treated fairly it is because they are being treated fairly & it's not what they thought it would be.
my 2 cents.
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