Submitted as a Letter to the Editor of the Coalfield Progress, here in Wise, VA, on 21 June 2015.
It’s NOT just another shooting.
A 'lone wolf gunman' entered the
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Charleston, SC on Wednesday
June 10th, then proceeded to shoot and kill 9 of our fellow
citizens.
The Criminal Justice system will determine the facts and apply the prescribed punishment in the months and years to come. It will answer whether this was a premeditated act, or a random, opportunistic act; did the killer understand right from wrong; was the killer in charge of their faculties at the time of the heinous act, and finally are they able to participate in their defense, as the case is presented and prosecuted.
The Criminal Justice system will determine all of that; however, what they can't determine is the 'why'? They can not, and will not be able to tell us why this happened. They can't tell us how this person was raised or how they formed into the killer they became, in this society that seemingly is so accepting of all peoples. This nation of immigrants, a beacon of freedom for all, which time and again turns and kills its own. How does this happen? Why do we do this to each other? What can I do? How can I help change this?
Those are the questions we need to be asking ourselves. These questions belong on the national stage. Very smart folks in the social sciences, others in mental health, and more in the forensics fields will turn this case, this individual, the community - micro and macro - inside out as they search for answers and causes to this seemingly planned act. The answer to why this person pulled that trigger involves the question of how did their environment define them and shape their thinking; thinking that led to this ability to walk into a building and target 9 of our citizen's. Nine people who he had never seen before, never met. Nine people who took nothing from him. Nine people who were not alone in this world. Their loss is felt deeply and irrevocably changes the lives of innumerable others - of the entire racial, color, gender, and socioeconomic spectrum.
Jon Stewart, on his Daily Show, opened with a somber monologue that began, "I honestly have nothing other than sadness that once again we have to peer into the abyss of the depraved violence that we do to each other and the nexus of a just gaping racial wound that will not heal yet we pretend doesn’t exist." He went on to remind us that, once again, we will actually do nothing about this while we continue to spend money protecting our Citizen's from untold threats abroad - which we can't be told about. He's on to something here - 'this shining city on a hill' that all people around the world aspire to; that dreams are made of and struggles are fought and won - with blood and sweat and yes, death. We ask people around the world to give up their lives in pursuit of this thing called 'Freedom' and yet....is this what we are asking them to fight for?
These shootings affect me on a much different scale than terrorist acts like 9/11 do. Not meant as disrespectful, or as an inflammatory statement - simply I understand more why terrorists meant, and continue to mean us harm. We are a big, convenient target that makes a mark - good and bad - throughout the world. The picture of our existence, which we project to the rest of the world, is exactly what paints a target upon us for terrorists and others. But what about what we do to each other? There is that question again. How can we continue to be successful, on the world stage, if we can't achieve success in this struggle at home? It is a struggle too: A struggle for existence.
If we accept that this continues to be a struggle for existence, then perhaps defining aspects of that existence is also needed. We need people who can explore and expand the question - or the definition of the question and broaden it to include a 360 degree viewpoint. Certainly we know that this racial divide exists. Whether we understand it completely or not, we must still accept its existence.
My view of this struggle for existence in the United States involves the following:
People of all colors or skin tones (exclusive of race)
People of all races - indigenous or not (exclusive of color or skin tone)
People of all socioeconomic classes
People of either or any gender
If you haven't already figured it out, read through that list again. The struggle for existence covers the entire spectrum, in my view. This is the United States of America, yet everyone struggles to exist in his or her own way; both black and white, including those of asian, hispanic, indian, middle eastern, european, or native descent. We struggle to achieve, we struggle to belong, we struggle to grow, and we struggle to exist.
We struggle to understand. When we cease this struggle to understand; when we believe we have it all figured out; when we think our problems have been solved, that they no longer exist; when we cease to question and simply accept what is...that is the day our struggles are over, that is the dawn of the beginning of the end of our existence.
While I can't answer why another shooting happens, I can continue to move forward, continue to question us, we the people must always question We The People - or we won't be those People anymore. I haven't heard from the National Rifle Association (NRA) yet, on this crime, but this crime is not the NRA's fault. The NRA is simply made up of fellow citizens who believe that they have a right to own guns. Sometimes the NRA's statements seem a little inflammatory, likewise the anti-NRA statements can similarly be inflammatory. A 360 degree view. Examine and study it from all angles. Seek consensus - the NRA, to my knowledge, does not advocate killing people. There is common ground. Find it, claim it for all sides, and then work from there to build a relationship. That has always been our countries strength, our framework of success has always been compromise - compromise that resulted from finding common ground and working towards a solution to achieve the greatest benefit for all.
Here's what I believe, what I feel without offering any proof. I feel that gridlock in our politics has contributed to this problem. I think that unrestricted money in political campaigns creates and fosters a socioeconomic environment that amplifies the distinct separations between classes and places barriers to movement between those classes. I think that continuing to pass on term-limits only makes this problem worse - that our ability to choose how to vote is becoming so shaped by the 'message' that we no longer allow ourselves to think clearly and rationally. The message gets us so emotionally charged that we enter the voting booth and vote from anger or fear; we don't vote from logic or reason; we aren't voting for the long-term health of our country, instead we are voting for the here and now. We believe that we must have gratification first and work for it later; we've allowed the media, corporations, and yes, politicians and the message to drive our wants and desires to the point that we are trapped in this cycle. We are no longer so willing to compromise our desires; we've conflicted our wants and needs in response to the message that is sent, viewed, and heard every day.
A repeated message that I have seen is that consumers must spend to ensure the stability and growth of the economy. What does this have to do with Dylann Roof? Perhaps he didn't have the resources to keep our economy afloat and he felt that he should have those resources and someone must have taken them or kept them away from him. Someone needed to be blamed. This is part of Merton's goal-means gap, it is part anomie, but it is not the sole reason this person entered that church and killed 9 of our fellow citizens. Altogether these things contribute to and impact the environment that we live and grow in – the environment that helps to shape and define us, the environment that is part of what makes our society.
We don't have to change our society or our system - we have to change us. We start that by asking - What can I do differently? What can I do daily? What can I do now?
The Criminal Justice system will determine the facts and apply the prescribed punishment in the months and years to come. It will answer whether this was a premeditated act, or a random, opportunistic act; did the killer understand right from wrong; was the killer in charge of their faculties at the time of the heinous act, and finally are they able to participate in their defense, as the case is presented and prosecuted.
The Criminal Justice system will determine all of that; however, what they can't determine is the 'why'? They can not, and will not be able to tell us why this happened. They can't tell us how this person was raised or how they formed into the killer they became, in this society that seemingly is so accepting of all peoples. This nation of immigrants, a beacon of freedom for all, which time and again turns and kills its own. How does this happen? Why do we do this to each other? What can I do? How can I help change this?
Those are the questions we need to be asking ourselves. These questions belong on the national stage. Very smart folks in the social sciences, others in mental health, and more in the forensics fields will turn this case, this individual, the community - micro and macro - inside out as they search for answers and causes to this seemingly planned act. The answer to why this person pulled that trigger involves the question of how did their environment define them and shape their thinking; thinking that led to this ability to walk into a building and target 9 of our citizen's. Nine people who he had never seen before, never met. Nine people who took nothing from him. Nine people who were not alone in this world. Their loss is felt deeply and irrevocably changes the lives of innumerable others - of the entire racial, color, gender, and socioeconomic spectrum.
Jon Stewart, on his Daily Show, opened with a somber monologue that began, "I honestly have nothing other than sadness that once again we have to peer into the abyss of the depraved violence that we do to each other and the nexus of a just gaping racial wound that will not heal yet we pretend doesn’t exist." He went on to remind us that, once again, we will actually do nothing about this while we continue to spend money protecting our Citizen's from untold threats abroad - which we can't be told about. He's on to something here - 'this shining city on a hill' that all people around the world aspire to; that dreams are made of and struggles are fought and won - with blood and sweat and yes, death. We ask people around the world to give up their lives in pursuit of this thing called 'Freedom' and yet....is this what we are asking them to fight for?
These shootings affect me on a much different scale than terrorist acts like 9/11 do. Not meant as disrespectful, or as an inflammatory statement - simply I understand more why terrorists meant, and continue to mean us harm. We are a big, convenient target that makes a mark - good and bad - throughout the world. The picture of our existence, which we project to the rest of the world, is exactly what paints a target upon us for terrorists and others. But what about what we do to each other? There is that question again. How can we continue to be successful, on the world stage, if we can't achieve success in this struggle at home? It is a struggle too: A struggle for existence.
If we accept that this continues to be a struggle for existence, then perhaps defining aspects of that existence is also needed. We need people who can explore and expand the question - or the definition of the question and broaden it to include a 360 degree viewpoint. Certainly we know that this racial divide exists. Whether we understand it completely or not, we must still accept its existence.
My view of this struggle for existence in the United States involves the following:
People of all colors or skin tones (exclusive of race)
People of all races - indigenous or not (exclusive of color or skin tone)
People of all socioeconomic classes
People of either or any gender
If you haven't already figured it out, read through that list again. The struggle for existence covers the entire spectrum, in my view. This is the United States of America, yet everyone struggles to exist in his or her own way; both black and white, including those of asian, hispanic, indian, middle eastern, european, or native descent. We struggle to achieve, we struggle to belong, we struggle to grow, and we struggle to exist.
We struggle to understand. When we cease this struggle to understand; when we believe we have it all figured out; when we think our problems have been solved, that they no longer exist; when we cease to question and simply accept what is...that is the day our struggles are over, that is the dawn of the beginning of the end of our existence.
While I can't answer why another shooting happens, I can continue to move forward, continue to question us, we the people must always question We The People - or we won't be those People anymore. I haven't heard from the National Rifle Association (NRA) yet, on this crime, but this crime is not the NRA's fault. The NRA is simply made up of fellow citizens who believe that they have a right to own guns. Sometimes the NRA's statements seem a little inflammatory, likewise the anti-NRA statements can similarly be inflammatory. A 360 degree view. Examine and study it from all angles. Seek consensus - the NRA, to my knowledge, does not advocate killing people. There is common ground. Find it, claim it for all sides, and then work from there to build a relationship. That has always been our countries strength, our framework of success has always been compromise - compromise that resulted from finding common ground and working towards a solution to achieve the greatest benefit for all.
Here's what I believe, what I feel without offering any proof. I feel that gridlock in our politics has contributed to this problem. I think that unrestricted money in political campaigns creates and fosters a socioeconomic environment that amplifies the distinct separations between classes and places barriers to movement between those classes. I think that continuing to pass on term-limits only makes this problem worse - that our ability to choose how to vote is becoming so shaped by the 'message' that we no longer allow ourselves to think clearly and rationally. The message gets us so emotionally charged that we enter the voting booth and vote from anger or fear; we don't vote from logic or reason; we aren't voting for the long-term health of our country, instead we are voting for the here and now. We believe that we must have gratification first and work for it later; we've allowed the media, corporations, and yes, politicians and the message to drive our wants and desires to the point that we are trapped in this cycle. We are no longer so willing to compromise our desires; we've conflicted our wants and needs in response to the message that is sent, viewed, and heard every day.
A repeated message that I have seen is that consumers must spend to ensure the stability and growth of the economy. What does this have to do with Dylann Roof? Perhaps he didn't have the resources to keep our economy afloat and he felt that he should have those resources and someone must have taken them or kept them away from him. Someone needed to be blamed. This is part of Merton's goal-means gap, it is part anomie, but it is not the sole reason this person entered that church and killed 9 of our fellow citizens. Altogether these things contribute to and impact the environment that we live and grow in – the environment that helps to shape and define us, the environment that is part of what makes our society.
We don't have to change our society or our system - we have to change us. We start that by asking - What can I do differently? What can I do daily? What can I do now?
