What is it about the interwebs and complete and udder jackassery? Is it that we as a species are simply racist, homophobic, mean spirited people who are so inundated with daily life pressures that we seek some anonymous means of releasing all of that anger and insecurity in a 150 character YouTube comment? Id like to think not. But then i know better.
(I'll start out with complete disclosure: i do love me some racial jokes. Everyone does. Dave Chapelle is one of the funniest men alive based in no small part on his understanding of this. This is not what I'm talking about in this blog, unless the jokes are made with malice or with the belief in some truth behind them. anyways, on with the blogging.)
Its only natural to fear or dislike or disapprove of someone or something that challenges your ideals, or what you've grown accustomed to. Racism is a natural instinct. Its part of the human condition. As much as we try and remove ourselves from the concept, we are still simply animals. We still have packs, herds. gaggles and prides and we still fight for territory and resources. We grow up with these groups and assume one of two basic roles: follower or rebel. within these roles there are,of course, sub groups and varying degrees. We either realize our accident of birth or we simply take what we are as some concrete destiny, though for most it isn't quite that deep
I myself don't even know where i fall in these two basic groups. On the one hand i could be considered a rebel in the sense that i grew up in a more or less typical white suburbanite, christian family and yet have not one racist bone in my body and am proud to count a homosexual as a not only an extremely close personal friend, but somewhat of a mentor.
On the other hand am i really rebelling against anything? My mother is a saint, and being catholic should be seriously considered as an applicant. To me, at least, my mother holds true to the often forgotten roots of the overall christian belief system. A loving, caring person who is steadfast in her love of Jesus and of the church, but more importantly in her love for the human being. With an insane work ethic and sense of responsibility this woman puts others ahead of herself on a constant basis. This is a woman who will spend hours upon hours at church be it teaching classes, taking classes, lecturing or just helping out for random events and yet still embrace my friends with open arms and a smile on her face and love in her heart. Shes not blinded by strange interpretations of an ancient text, but enlightened by the simplest and most important message that book has to offer. This woman is the face of Christ incarnate.
And despite my years of Catholic school in year after year of all white classes, my first best friend on this planet was my next door neighbor, a black female.
Perhaps I'm just one of the lucky ones who escaped this symptom of the human condition, spared by an accident of birth to a truly remarkable woman and an accident of circumstance to be placed into situations that would challenge my "destined" values. Perhaps the human race isn't in as bad shape as i tend to think it is. But just as i had my positive experiences shaping my world view, it always comes back to that human instinct.
I've had white people say incredibly racist things in my presence, I've had Christians say incredibly homophobic things and I've heard atheists/agnostics/other wise say some horrible things about Christians. It all stems from the same basic point: we fear that which challenges our personal values and we group those who challenge us into the other pack,herd,gaggle or pride.
Its not in our natural instinct to accept others, but then again, its not in our natural instinct to shit in a toilet or wipe our asses. I thank my mother for teaching me how to do both of these things and for helping me make this world just the tiniest bit less shitty
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