Considering all that is happening in Minneapolis and throughout the world, I’m forgoing my commitment to the “One Thing” series for today.
At approximately 6:30 AM, Sunday, June 30, 2019, a gunshot shattered the morning of the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood of Cincinnati. Within minutes, a 14-year-old boy lay bleeding to death on the sidewalk. His name was Anthony and he was one of my students.
I bring this up because this one hit me hard – and still does.
I bring this up because we are fortunate to be living in the ‘day of captured video’. What happened to George Floyd and many others is there for all to see.
I bring this up because I pray for change. I pray for tolerance, for understanding, and for compassion.
I bring this up because change requires effort and before we begin the task, we need to understand. We need to feel what others feel. Unity can only exist with an awareness of history and experience.
There is a root cause. This underlying system did not begin with me or with you. However, we have not only inherited the problem but are in a unique position to benefit from the same. Because of this, effective change can only begin when we, with our non-white brothers and sisters, collectively cry out. "Enough!".
There is a hidden tragedy that needs to be recognized and addressed. It’s buried in small news articles that never become widely known. It’s found in the darkest corners of our society. It’s rarely revealed and quickly forgotten
It is the background story for the videotaped recordings of authority-figure failures.
It is found in the words of a mother of mixed-race children as she states that they are "white-passing". It's found in the words of a black wife as she remembers a moment she is stopped by the police. She is a default-deemed suspect until her white husband arrives. Suddenly she hears, "You all enjoy the day folks."
If you're not familiar with privilege,
please spend a few minutes
Note: As with all 'illustrations' it makes a point
but falls apart with complex human societies.
This video features high-school or college-age youth. So I listened and tracked my answers based on that time of my life.
I 'scored' 14 steps forward.
Based on what I know of Anthony, he would have moved exactly 2 steps forward.
Two weeks shy of and only 2 miles away, Anthony's dad died by gunshot in 2014. Living in one of the most depressed areas of the city, some of Anthony's meals were available only because of the non-profit located around the corner. It was there that he was also given tutoring – his only opportunity for 2 steps forward.
I wonder what the future looked like in his innermost thoughts. I wonder if a sense of hopelessness dampened his outlook for a good education. I wonder if this unseen 2017 exercise was lived out in daily existence as some ‘that’s just the way things are’ attitude.
I’ll never know. I can no longer ask him.
But we can ask. We can diligently research and discover. We can step out of the boundaries of 'likeness'. We can get involved with others while we actively and compassionately listen. We can bridge differences. We can move towards healing.
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| Anthony Lamont Hinton October 29, 2004 - June 30, 2019 Rest in Peace |
If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.1 John 3:17-18
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