What will be the legacy?

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By ROBERT

HOUGHTALING

As a child I can remember folks like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King advocating on behalf of Black Americans. In addition, I can vividly recall Bob Dylan and other musical artists singing about racial concerns. The 1960s were a tumultuous time for many reasons. Civil Rights was near, or close to, the top of the list. The recent riots in Ferguson and Baltimore, along with the questionable deaths of a number of Black Men, harkens back to those days all too often relegated to history books. Unfortunately, it seems as though we are still making history–and not always for the right reasons.

Two thousand years from now I wonder how future historians will view the United States. When we look back to ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, Babylon etc., much good is contrasted with all too frequent foibles. Slavery, war and conquest are balanced by the scientific, medical, architectural marvels these civilizations offered. For example, Rome, for all of her roads, aqueducts and arches, threw people to the lions. They also crucified folks along the Appian Way and condoned slavery. I guess most great societies offer a mixed bag. Will this be so for America? Will tomorrow’s students learn that we put a man on the moon as well as put men in chains? Will they also learn that the ‘land of the free and the home of the brave’ confined Blacks to plantations and Native Americans to reservations?  Because we are living now, it is difficult to ascertain how those in the future will view us. With this being said, I wonder if Ramses the Great or King Tut thought their bodies and personal items would be gawked at centuries later all in the name of History. 

I am guessing that history will say many nice things about us. I am also pretty sure that folks will look back at the cruelty we showed Blacks, Native Americans and others. While we cannot change the past, the present can certainly influence the future. There is still time for us to write additional chapters. Are we insightful enough to recognize this?

Race continues to be one of our nation’s largest concerns. In the past few years, barely a week goes by without some form of a tragic incident occurring between police and African Americans. To make matters worse, blame is assigned to the police or the black community, based all too often on a worldview. Unfortunately, the issue goes deeper than that. It goes to jobs, poverty, the Justice System and opportunity. It also goes to a long history of mistrust, fear and stereotyping from those unable, or unwilling, to engage in real dialogue. Six, alleged, criminally negligent police officers, in Baltimore, are merely an additional page to a sad story.

All too often we hear “they have to get over it, that was years ago”. All too often we hear “Why don’t they just go to school or get jobs”. All to often we hear “ I wish that I could go to Brown because of my color”. All too often this leads to additional mistrust and alienation. This cannot be about blame. Unfortunately, there are those who exploit these tensions by pushing for the extremes. Yes, we have come far. Yes, we have miles to go.

It broke my heart watching several school-aged kids in Baltimore filled with such angst and despair. The rioting was misguided. The looting was misguided. The throwing of rocks detracted from the real issues at hand. Left unaddressed, future African Americans will be doomed to prison, poverty and hopelessness. Left unaddressed, all of America will reel from the agony racism and classism bring. Violence cannot be justified despite the frustrations. It is, however, imperative that we acknowledge the years of pent-up hopelessness that leads some to despair and others to lashing out.

Our past history cannot be altered, but because of America’s ability to change, we can do much to influence what future scholars write about us. Finger pointing, riots and intransigence should not be our authors. Honesty, fairness and the belief that “all men are created equal” must be. We can begin writing a page or two today. That would be a legacy worth leaving.

Bob Houghtaling, a long-time contributor to these pages, runs the drug program in East Greenwich.

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