"Crossing Color Lines" by Tonya Patrice Jordan

Crossing Color Lines 

America is in a pitiful state of denial.  It was never great.  Let us consider Abraham Lincoln.  He wrote “…[i]f I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it; and if could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do it…”  His first priority was not my great-grandaunt, a newly freed slave forced to pull a cart until she died.  How many more women in my family would have experienced the unspeakable horror of not having dominion over their own bodies if this supposedly great American leader could have unified the states without ending slavery?  Every American can shudder at the thought.

Bad habits are hard to break.  Many people in power today still seem willing to conduct business as usual even if it means the disenfranchised are forced to bear heavy burdens.  The bitter clash over the structure of universal healthcare is proof in point.  Add this to the troubling reality of how people of color often pay a high price in blood (ongoing genocide), sweat (never knowing who dies next), and tears (burying too many boys).  Our homeland continues to offer conditional freedoms.  America embraces peaceful protest until someone like Colin Kaepernick remains seated or takes a knee.   Apparently, it is profoundly unpatriotic to shine a light upon this country’s habitual failure to offer liberty and justice to all of its citizens.

The next American Revolution begins when our rage is directed at the broken political machine and what is rotten in that big white house.  Politicians spewing lies, exhibiting an egregious lack of integrity, in order to get elected can no longer be the status quo.  We encourage our children not to be silent bystanders when they see bullying.  Yet, their parents and role models tacitly agree to policymakers perpetuating a culture of name-calling and acrimony in politics.    It is time for voters to make it very clear that only public servants committed to fighting for the greater good deserve to be our representatives in government. 

Myopia has become a stumbling block to effective collaboration throughout our entire land, especially on Capitol Hill.  Charismatic candidates cannot be rewarded for pandering to what one side or the other supposedly wants to hear.  Americans voters are pigeon-holed into being either bleeding-heart liberals or conservative right-wing Christians.  So many voices are silenced when the subtle nuances of our disparate concerns and dreams are overlooked.  And any divisive political agenda, no matter how skillfully crafted, belongs in Boston Harbor.  

The partisan divide has been increasing over the last several years.  The Pew Research Center reports that 45% of Republicans consider Democratic policies to be a threat to our nation while 41% of Democrats say the same about Republican policies.  You sing the blues while I am all red-hot and bothered because of some arbitrary lines on a two-tone map.  Just say no!  True national pride is shown when Americans can disagree about everything under the sun without forgetting to have a deep concern for everyone sheltering under this country’s flag.  Colorblind voters must focus on supporting candidates who willingly reach across the aisle, making sure that all citizen are treated fairly; this is especially important within the judicial system.   

    

The confusion arising from the perpetual infighting deflects attention away from what should be our greatest source of shame.  Broken families in decimated communities bear the brunt of the systemic failures within our government.  Nearly half of our children, a disturbing 44%, under the age of 18 live in poverty or dangerously close to the poverty line according to the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP).  The number of disadvantaged youths living in our land of plenty continues to increase.  This hardship disproportionately affects the 65% of Black children, the 62% of American Indian children, and the 62% of Hispanic children who live in low-come families.  This national tragedy cannot be ignored.

Knowledge has the power to liberate the masses.  Poverty in America is a multifactorial social ill, but the data suggests higher levels of parental education decrease the likelihood that a child will live in poverty.  The lack of equal access to high-quality education is a clear barrier to parents acquiring adequate employment.  It perpetuates a curse which is passed down through the generations and prevents parents from providing their children with better prospects.  This nation has to learn, before it is too late, that everyone’s future is threatened by a culture which consistently denies certain segments of our society the opportunity to achieve the American dream. 

The USA advertises itself as a place where everyone is welcome to add his unique beauty to the melting pot.  The ambitious, hard-working immigrant is promised she will find success within our borders.  But this country falls short of being a place where differences truly are celebrated.  An insidious us-versus-them mentality is allowed to persist because diversity is treated as a curse and not a blessing.  The beatings we viciously dole out, compounded by the slurs so readily found on the tips of our tongues, fan the flames of a seething discord.       

This nation will either stand united or fall prey to warring parties.  The desire to retreat and become part of some insular group is a natural human instinct.  Who wouldn’t be afraid in this day and age when anybody could be attacked brutally anywhere and for any reason?  We are all hurting in different ways, but every citizen should stop recounting the various past wrongs.  Yes, I am pointing a finger at myself as well.  Our children need for us to view our neighbors as potential family members instead of sworn enemies.  There is wisdom to be found in the concept of making love not war.    

Americans will continue to witness class struggles, race riots, and senseless brutality until being a brother’s keeper becomes second nature.  Start thinking about how the person standing nearby, no matter how different, can be helped.  Every American has the potential to become good ground for the seeds of change.  We have to demand more of ourselves first.  It could be called “explode-up politics”.  A chain reaction is inevitable.  Politicians will look past the obvious color lines as they follow the lead of their constituents.  What a wonderful starting point in the battle against all forms of discrimination.

America does not want to be the butt of some sad joke.  A world superpower lies in ruins because the blind led silent bystanders into the proverbial ditch.  Don’t laugh.  The annals of history are filled with the disastrous results of such folly

Bio:   Here is my bio:  Tonya Patrice Jordan is a poet, a writer, and a surgeon.  She is the author of Knowing Sunshine, a collection of inspirational poems and one short story. {read the book; website}  Currently, Tonya is working on her second collection of poems and one short story.  One of her first poems was published in the anthology Becoming Doctors, a collection of poetry and art created by medical students.  Her poems can be read in Linden Avenue Literary Magazine and Peace Poems, an anthology compiled for NJ Peace Action.  One of her short stories was a semifinalist in Ruminate Magazine’s 2015 short story contest.  Tonya writes the occasional opinion piece and blogs sometimes.  {read the blog America Needs God}  And her latest short film is presently in pre-production.