Again I call upon Gustav Vigeland’s artwork and what I view as the states of human condition – they continue to amaze me. I begin a discussion of man against man, which is inherently man against himself and his own nature.
What motivates me? In short, I don’t know, but today I am motivated to write. I was propelled out of bed by a thought, ‘…when are people going to be held accountable for what they write and say?’ Why this though you may ask – well, I have an answer for you.
If you’ve read my past blogs, you know that I blog as a form of therapy. I am not trying to teach anyone anything or persuade the reader how to think by accepting my thought. They are mine and I am entitled to them.
In the current media, there are reports that a hacker(s) is on the loose. Sorry Sony, you’re it. The Sony executives have been caught with their proverbial pants down. They have expressed themselves, i.e. given their thoughts, and they are entitled to them (see where I am going). What is more interesting to me is the response to their private correspondence.
On the topic of President Barack Obama, Sony executive Scott Rudin wrote the following apology for his ‘racially tinged’ emails:
“To anybody I’ve offended, I’m profoundly and deeply sorry, and I regret and apologize for any injury they might have caused,” the film producer Scott Rudin said in a statement after the disclosure of his private email banter with Amy Pascal, Sony’s co-chairwoman, about Mr. Obama and black-themed films. “I made a series of remarks that were meant only to be funny, but in the cold light of day, they are in fact thoughtless and insensitive — and not funny at all.”
Ms. Pascal said in her own statement: “The content of my emails to Scott were insensitive and inappropriate but are not an accurate reflection of who I am. Although this was a private communication that was stolen, I accept full responsibility for what I wrote and apologize to everyone who was offended.”
The executive finally realizes that comments made in jest aren’t funny to everyone. Nor is it polite to make a funny or to tease a person on his viewing pleasure, especially when the banter is racially motivated – there is no other explanation for the three movies suggested, “Django Unchained”, “12 Years a Slave” and “The Butler.” I am an American of African descent and my favorite movie (of all times) is “Dangerous Liaisons.” The actors, for lack of knowledge of their true heritage, are all white.
There are people of all races supporting the executives and saying that it isn’t a reflection of them and they are not racist. To either agree or disagree with their assessment, we must all be in agreement and hold the same understanding of what it means to be a racist. By definition, a racist believes in the doctrine that inherent differences among the various human racial groups determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one’s own race is superior and has the right to dominate others or that a particular racial group is inferior to the others (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/racism). Thus by definition, I cannot agree the executives are not racist, but certainly the set of assumptions they chose to play upon are teetering on a racist ideology. In the end, our judgments are our beliefs and we continue to build upon them throughout our lives by words and deeds.
As an American of African (AA) descent, will it always be the case that my blackness is the first and dominant characteristic that the observer chooses to recognize? If so…why? That is a question I cannot answer for those of different races, but I do wonder when a mass blinder will be removed; after all how we see people is a choice. If I am judged by only skin color, I like other AA people must love fried chicken, watermelon and only listen to rap music. Contrary to those stereotypes, I have been a vegetarian for twenty-five years (I do like watermelon), grew up in a household that listened to country and gospel music exclusively and completed college (along with many of my friend) and earned advanced degrees. I see people (not dead people as in the movie “The Sixth Sense”) for who they are and continue to be judgmental based on how they treat others (still working on my stuff). I also believe that we should be held accountable for what they say, with the knowledge that there is underlying stuff we all carry around. Until we as a human race begin to examine our stuff (conscious and subconscious) and determine if it is of any value, we will continue to make insensitive remarks that are racially influenced; in the name of and under the guise of humor…of course.
