How in the world did my little hometown pull a reverse ratio in order to maintain what the citizens of white persuasion called keeping “a way of life” alive for several centuries? In the last half of the 20th Century, the “minority” of non-voting citizens was approximately 70%, who happened to be of the ineligible black persuasion. You did not need a wall in those days to keep the lines of demarcation since the color of your skin – rather than the content of your character – was fairly indelible. Railroad tracks served as a mild steel barrier for housing […]
Hoodwinked and Bamboozled
In an attempt to save face and cover his dismal inaugural exposure four years ago, the then newly-elected President had to resort to a strategy that would beguile his next four years in office. The water hit the proverbial wheel on the first day in office when a dispute arose in the land as to just how many folks showed up for the inauguration. Looking at information provided by the National Park Service, the press approximated that there were about 160,000 odd people lining the mall. Rather than confuse the issue with such reliable data here, let’s just say someone […]
The Courage of Our Convictions
Call it what you will, but that violent insurrection against our country last week was nothing more than a mob scene gone berserk. They had been invited and incited by President Trump who tweeted to his base on December 19: “Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!” “Wild” was an understatement. As I watched the madness, I was reminded of another mob that turned the tide in my life nearly sixty years earlier when one person’s profile in courage made all the difference in the world. In the long hot summer of 1964, my hometown […]
Final Jeopardy
Over the past six months or so, we have endured a major pandemic that’s killing us and an election that drove a divisive wedge between us. Beneath the surface another drama was unfolding that threatened to diminish us even further: the life-long host of “Jeopardy” was dying of cancer. At the end of each weekday, when the sound and fury of nightly news programs concluded their chaotic reporting of the trauma and tragedy of the day, we welcomed the game show with host Alex Trebek. We watched the new contestants along with the returning champions compete with their knowledge of […]
When Our Memory Is Our Future
“You show promise.” Do you remember when someone told you that? It may have been a teacher or a coach. Some other adult you respected in your growing years. I can’t pinpoint the memory in my own mind, but the phrase swirled around me, caught hold and pulled me toward the future with more hope. I had almost forgotten about it, until I heard it recently. Suddenly, time-released capsules of images exploded in little visions of all those in my past who said that to me. Maybe they never said it out loud, but I somehow knew that they believed […]