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EDITORIAL
Elenit
a Muniz -the
county human
rights director and
a lifelong advocate
for equality - recently
said: "I believe only white
people can end racism."
She also said that all
white-skinned people are
racist.
Muniz said these things,
in part, because of the
results of an online test
that she took, which
pointed out some of the
unintentional beliefs that
sit quietly in the corners
of one's mind.
After saying these
remarks, and others, at
a human rights event on
Dec. 9, Muniz came under
public fire.
She says that some
important parts of her
message never made it
into print; nevertheless,
she has since apologized.
Muniz used a combina-
tion of words that stung
an awful lot of people.
Regarding her point, it
could be said that in cer-
tain other corners of the
world, such as Western
Europe, white people can
help to end racism. But
that might be a hard sell
in places like Japan and
the Sudan, where other
dominant cultures have
their own biases.
But is every white per-
son racist? Of course not.
And are there black rac-
ists? Hell, yes.
That said, there was
more than a grain of truth
to what Muniz said, espe-
cially here in the United
States.
The words in between
her words came from
experience.The message:
White privilege is alive
and well in America.
It's not something that
white people easily iden-
tify about themselves.
Why? Because for the past
few centuries in American
churches, classrooms and
other institutions, white
people taught from books
written by other white
people about white people
to a bunch of mostly white
people.
Let us not forget our
recent history:The Boston
busing crisis (the violence
in 1976), the civil rights
movement (federal act
in 1968) and the end of
American slavery (1865).
These milestones of dark-
ness and light are within a
stone's throw of the pres-
ent day.Are we to believe
that people of Cape Cod
have become so enlight-
ened that they've eradi-
cated hate and fear from
their hearts?
Are we to oust Muniz
from ner job because she
gave voice to something -
albeit poorly -that in its
essence is true?
To the outraged and
incensed: Economic,
educational and social
oppression continues to
this very day,directed
toward the very same
people who were enslaved
just 160 years ago.
To those who say the
system has been fixed
to address inequality:
Unfortunately,the pass-
ing of laws doesn't change
hearts and minds over-
night.It takes time, under-
standing and effort.
True equality? As a
people, we simply are not
there yet.
We still harbor ludicrous
beliefs.
Weare not yet color
blind.
Weare still racist.
Let us not forget
our recent history:
The Boston busing
crisis (the violence
in 1976), the civil
rights movement
(federal act in 1968)
and the end of
American slavery
(1865).
Wearestill racist
Whoever designed
the human life span
did quite a poor
job . We do things
when we are young that we
should do when we're old
and we do things when we're
old that we should do when
we're young. Of course, my
pointing it out isn't going
to change anything except
perhaps a few attitudes and a
rearranging of priorities.Th at
would be nice.
I'm on my third marriage
and Esquire Magazine warned
me that a man should never
marry a childless woman in
her mid-30s. But who in their
right mind would listen to
Esquire Magazine. I was only
reading it because I was in
the doctors'office getting my
lipids evaluated. Little did I
know.
In any event, I now have two
sons considerably younger
than my grandchildren. My
father-in-law is younger than
I am. Our family get-togethers
are quite an exercise in the
laws of consanguinity.Tothe
point, I am a much better
father in my 60s than I ever
was in my 20s. I'm retired and
therefore spend every day
with them. I'm more even-
tempered , more judicious,
less likely to strike out in
anger more likely to"smell the
roses.Toungpeople are none
of these, especially fathers
who are starting careers and
barely have enough time after
work to say goodnight.This
second generation of Pastore
kids is really a first; I cannot
recall any or the growing up
of my two daughters because
I was a workaholic with my
own business.That company
was my kids.This old dad
thing is not for everyone, I'll
admit. Some oldsters prefer
the pasture to the playroom. I
can't blame them. And three
marriages is a terrible idea
unless you believe in the "try,
try, again"maxim. I do. Maybe
you don't.
Let's assume you don't have
a batch of hatchlings when
you're in your 60s. How's
retirement going? Not being
in the old grind is great. Being
in line at God'sWaiting Room,
not so much. I've learned
more about lipid panels, blood
pressure meds, insomnia and
a general sense of ennui than
I ever cared to. Building a day
around a visit to a cardiac
specialist is most definitely
not as enjoyable as a day at
the office, even a lousy day
at the office. When you're 26,
you don't think that a gas pain
is a prelude to cardiac arrest.
When you're 70, a gas pain
is like five alarms. At 30, you
think you'll live forever, but
instead of "living,"what you're
doing is working.This uses up
your life and it uses up you, so
that by the time you're ready
to stop working, you're just
about at the end of the funny
crease that runs through the
middle of your palm which
some people call a"life line."
Note that the word"retire"
is mostly made up of "tire"
which you now do quickly and
frequently.
I teach at the Academy for
Lifelong Learning.The stu-
dents are all retired and are
studying things they always
wanted to study when they
were young but couldn't
because these topics did not
help to get a high-paying job.
I've taught at the college and
at post-graduate level most
of my life and I can tell you
that these A.L.L. students are
much better material for the
learning process than 99 per-
cent of the smooth-skinned,
bright-eyed, nimble and
bushy-tailed 20-somethings
that only needed me to give
them a good grade and cared
not a whit about what my col-
leagues and I were saying. My
new students are interested,
talkative, genuinely intellectu-
ally stimulated and curious
about the subject matter.They
are there because they want to
be and they bring with them
a plethora of experience and
knowledge that youngsters
can't even dream about. How
can a 20-year-old relate to the
character Newland Archer in
Edith Wharton's"The Age of
Innocence"who gives up the
woman he loved most in the
world to honor a promise he
made to his fiancee? Today's
young people go through each
other like T-shirts:a fresh
clean one every day. It's only
we older ones who know the
true feeling of life's bruises.
So, I'd like to suggest to the
Designer in the Sky a few
changes. Let's study, play
and generally enjoy life until
we're, say, 45.Then we marry
and start work.At 50 or 55, we
have children. We experience
the working, married parent-
ing life until we die or until
we can't go on anymore. If
the universe was made in only
six days, would this change be
so difficult? In the 1980s film
"Star Man"with Jeff Bridges,
an alien is eating in a diner —
the first time he's ever tasted
food.The waitress brings
him a hamburger, a coke and
apple pie. He starts with the
pie.The woman he's with says,
"No, don't eat that first. Eat
that last."He responds,"Why?"
and proceeds to eat the deli-
cious dessert first. Life should
be just like that.
Stephen R. Pastore is a
novelist and biographer. He
lives in Marstons Mills with
his wife and two sons. Email
him at stevepastore01@gmail.
com.
Lifeinreverse
By Barbara Clark
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS IMAGE
The winter solstice, as seen in this time lapse photo from
2010, was once celebrated. Nowadays, the author of this
column craves a dark corner or two.
S
o
what'sthe deal -are our
eyes getting worse? No,with
our glasses, contacts and
hi-tech laser surgery,they're
actually better! So why, then, are
our already-overlit streets fill-
ing up with cars sporting high-
intensity discharge headlights,
you know the kind I mean, with
the slight bluish tint that strikes
you blind if you should happen
to look straight-on. I always feel
a little nervous when a car with
these lights goes by; I have the
uneasy feeling those twin orbs
have flashed an evil grin at me
and are doing something undead
behind my back.
The pros and cons of HID
illumination aside, perhaps this
awful total light has to do with our
current obsession with hanging
out all the laundry.Social media
is overflowing with stuff we don't
want to hear; everyone's confess-
ing to something; and now we
want every corner lit.
For thousands of years the
dark has been holy.The earliest
humans thought the sky was a
huge black tent pierced with tiny
holes that gave the barest glimpse
of the glowing light of heaven
beyond,while not letting us in on
the whole secret. Now we know
the secret:the total canvas is itself
black, but lit with an unending
array of stars to keep us in our
proper place.
So as I pass down life's highway
-please, give me a break, a little
shade; some dark; some feathery
shadow behind which I can take
a breather, rework a few things
maybe. I don't want today's crap
lit up so that every last error, every
last tinyword stands out like a
brightly lit sore thumb.The winter
solstice is a reminder that in the
longest night we inherit the dark
first , before the sun pretty much
always rises again. Personally I
need that contrast.
Some of my favorite lines are
the final ones in DylanThomas'
famous poem"AChild's Christ-
mas in Wales.The child narrating
the poem has had a busy day,but
that night he finally climbs into
bed:"I could see the lights in the
windows of all the other houses on
our hill and hear the music rising
from them up the long, steadily
falling night. I turned the gas
down, I got into bed. I said some
words to the close and holy dark-
ness, and then I slept."
Barbara Clark is the copy editor
and listings editor at the Patriot.
She can be reached bclark®
barnstablepatriot.com.
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