7.23.2013

A CLASS IN REMEDIAL HUMANITY


1.
All of us who have taught courses and have had to correct and grade student papers are well aware of the sorry state of writing these days.  It is no better if one has been an editor of a literary magazine, where bad poetry, bad prose and bad grammar often combine.  "Before expiring, a body had climbed over the seat and up toward the window..." For students who write sentences such as this one, there is help: a course in remedial English.
I think, however, that there is a problem prevalent today that is even worse, much worse, than writing badly. Stated simply, it is our self-righteous penchant of talking at each other rather than talking to each other.  Talking to each other implies not only listening to each other, but respecting each other's point of view and possibly modifying one's own view accordingly. Is it too much too hope for that persons on opposite sides of a spectrum could sit down, have a dialogue and learn from each other? I have assumed for many years  that honest dialogue would be more difficult  among government representatives where it's all--or nearly all--about power.   Our current Congress has proved this assertion to be correct to an unprecedented degree,  as anyone who follows American politics knows.  In this country, however, so fanatically divided between conservatives and liberals, honest dialogue is becoming increasingly rare even among ordinary citizens, from whom one would expect  more nuanced views.  (Ever wonder why it is a truism not to bring up politics or religion at parties?)
Things have gotten markedly worse.  I will use the Trayvon Martin case as an example of the current sorry state of not listening to each other.  Extreme conservatives, preaching to their couch-potato choir, have said some outrageous things regarding Trayvon Martin; similarly, extreme liberals have said outrageous things about George Zimmerman.  I think both groups need to take a course in remedial humanity. They need it!
Here's how, in this thought experiment, the class would work.  There is a test called the "The Implicit Association Test," the IAT, available online, which assesses the presence of a variety of prejudices, e.g. racial prejudice, prejudice regarding age, gender and against the obese.  These tests have produced surprising results: many African Americans harbor some degree of bias--against African Americans.  I took the age-bias test and discovered that I, a senior citizen, have some degree of prejudice against, well, senior citizens.  The degree of prejudice is what is important, of course.
The teacher of the remedial humanity class would devise a test to assess one's views of the Trayvon Martin case.  Out of, say, sixty results,  one would compose a class of fifteen of those with the most extreme conservative views along with fifteen of those with the most extreme liberal views.  The teacher would thus have a class of students who need intervention the most.
The teacher would begin the class as follows: "You are here today because your test results indicate that you are in need of a class in remedial humanity.  Your extreme views are evidence that you are unable to respect opinions other than your own.  I'm here to help you to listen to your opponents with respect"  The instructor would then write on the blackboard--yes, a course in remedial humanity is quite out-of-date--the following saying: Do not judge another unless you have walked a mile in that person's moccasins The goal of this class, the teacher would go on to explain, is to transfer this saying from your lips to your hearts and minds.
To the fifteen extreme conservatives, the instructor would then assign the following essay, using the following sentences as guidelines: How would you feel if you were the parent of Trayvon Martin? How would you feel if your son was coming back from a store, minding his own business, and wound up dead, killed by someone who assumed he was up to no good?  Are you really convinced that racial profiling had nothing to do with this case?  Are you sufficiently cognizant of the horrible legacy of racial prejudice in this county?  In a country where racism, albeit on the decline, is still very much alive; in a country where nearly every black person can give personal examples of being  the victim of racial animus--are you justified in telling fellow black citizens, outraged by this case, to simply "Get over it!?"  If you were black how would you like to have somebody say that to you?
The extreme liberals would have to write an essay from the opposite point of view: How would you feel if you were the parent of George Zimmerman?  Do you think that characterizing him as a racist thug does him justice?  Are you sure that Zimmerman hunted Trayvon down and killed him simply because he was a young black male wearing  a hoodie? Are there any ambiguities in this case that would militate against  a conviction of second degree murder?  Do you think it would have made sense to send Zimmerman to jail for perhaps thirty years? Is racism in this country getting better or worse?
The students would be assigned to wear the metaphorical moccasins of those with opposing  views
for a month, after which they would write their essays.  Grading would be easy.  They would take the IAT once more; those that evince a shift toward the center would pass.  The teacher wouldn't even have to read the essays--thank God--except to determine whether the student in question defended the Florida Stand Your Ground Law, which would result in a big, fat, walloping F. The instructor, ready for the next 30 students, would have the great satisfaction of knowing that he or she has provided much needed help in resolving the terrible problem of self-righteous posturing.


2.

If you listen to extreme conservatives, race is no longer of concern in this country.  If you listen to extreme liberals, you get the impression that  things have gotten worse.  I am going to give you a very personal anecdote about why I, a white parent of a black son, disagree with both camps.
I have never discussed this incident with anyone other than with my wife and son, but I believe it's time to mention it now.
An Indian friend of my son, who is dark-skinned and could easily be mistaken for black, at least from a distance, was visiting my son at our house.  He left to go home around  2 a.m.  He discovered that his car, parked across the street from our house, wouldn't start and got my son to help him. (My son and his friend were very quiet, respecting the time of night.  The neighborhood in which we have lived for many years consists of families who are white except for the notable exception of ours--my wife is from India, my son is adopted.)  Looking out a window and seeing two dark-skinned individuals, a neighbor called the police. reporting a robbery in progress--I have no doubt that racial profiling was at work here. The police came. They, of course, had guns.  They asked him rather gruffly what he was doing?  He politely explained the situation and indicated that he lived in the house directly across the street..  The two white officers apologized profusely.  Sorry,Sir, sorry, sorry, we received a report and we had to investigate.
How do you think I felt?  I was extremely happy!  You are alive! I told my son, thank God!  Yes, there is still a lot of racial profiling going on in this country--Although my family can give examples not only of the hazards of Driving While Black but also of the hazards of Flying While Brown, we all agree that things have gotten a lot better. Thirty years ago, there would have been no Sorry; thirty years ago there certainly would have been no Sir. Thirty years ago,  they might have drawn their guns.  Thirty years ago they might have shouted FREEZE! and misinterpreting your closing the hood of your friend's car,  my son,  for reaching for a weapon, they might have shot you.  And, undoubtedly, they would have been cleared of charges of murder. Things like that have happened.  That no injuries occurred, however, provides no solace to the Martin family.  But it's important to state that tragedies like Martin's unnecessary death are becoming increasingly rare, as we will illustrate shortly.
There has been much nonsense written about the Trayvon Martin case.  I am done reading about it.  I am done listening to pundits pontificate about it.  If all this talk doesn't result in something positive, such as the repeal of the notorious Florida Stand Your Ground Law, it's just a lot of yada yada yada, largely directed at opponents rather than to them.  The Economist, a British magazine, got it right, though:

Happily, incidents such as Mr Martin's death are becoming rarer...Although blacks are more likely to be attacked by strangers (of any race) they are less than half as likely to be attacked as they were 20 years ago.  The odds of being attacked correlate more with age and income than with race...
That is little consolation to Mr Martin's family or the many frightened black parents in America.  Mr Watson, the pastor from Sanford, says he would not have thought twice about whether it was safe for his children to walk to the store alone before the shooting.  Now, he says with a sigh, he would never let them.

--The Economist, July 20-July 26, 2013, page 28.

3.

I still have great faith in the American people.  There are many problems, true, but with the right strategies things could get a lot better. I have no doubt that not only those with extremist views, but ordinary citizens, too, would benefit from a course in remedial humanity. (Life offers many courses in remedial humanity to those humble enough to learn.)  I doubt, though, that many extreme conservative and extreme liberal pundits, such as those seen on TV,  would be willing to learn much-needed lessons on how to treat and to listen to others..  "How dare you think that I need such a course? I have a PhD in..."  "I refuse to walk in someone else's filthy moccasins."  "Do you really expect me to take off my Gucci shoes?"   "Do you really expect me to remove my Pradas?"

Yes, I suppose I do.


.

1 comment:

  1. "Looking out a window and seeing two dark-skinned individuals, a neighbor called the police. reporting a robbery in progress"

    I'm going to modify Hanlon's Razor here to apply to your specific situation, from:

    "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."

    to

    "Never attribute to racial-profiling that which is adequately explained by the suspicion of two men in the middle of the night in your neighborhood"

    Perhaps the greater reality here is that anyone would be suspicious of two men, regardless of race, at 2 am in the morning loitering about a car and attempting to move it.

    Isn't that the more reasonable probability and lens through which to have viewed this occurence?

    ReplyDelete