"Let's Have the Conversation About Race"

Article from CNN Opinion

The subject in this article is, well, should we talk about race? The reason that this is so debated, is because of all of the political accusations made, specifically about race, in some murder cases. In this case, Chris Lane, a college baseball player from Australia, was shot by some teenagers in Duncan, Oklahoma. Lane was in Oklahoma visiting his girlfriend and her family when he was shot by two black teenagers, who then drove away in a car driven by a white boy. So, why is this an issue? People are wondering why the race card is not being thrown all over the table in this case. Why should we not point out the racial difference, when in cases like the shooting of Trayvon Martin it was flung all over the place as if it was the only possible motive of the killer. Why should this case be different? Does the fact that the shooters were African-American make a difference, and it is just too "taboo" to talk about? The opinions expressed are that we should talk about race. Not that we should accuse everyone of killing because of race, not condemning someone because of race, not pointing it out to bring hatred towards one race or another. The reason we should talk about race is because, yes, it is a possible motive. Yes, it is more information. And don't we need all the information we can get? As they say, "Would we leave out of a story any mention of one's gender or age, so we're not accused of sexism or ageism?"

 Do I agree with this article? Yes, I do. I think that the time has come to look racism square in the face. We have fought it for years, and many think that it is a problem of the past. But who are they kidding? People are still racist. So should we let them have their opinions and just let this chasm of discrimination slowly widen? No. We need to face the problem head on. However, I think that we need to be careful. In our talk about race, we should come at it with an open view. We should not lean towards one side of the story, because of race. We should talk about it, as the article suggests, the same way we should gender. It's a characteristic. It is part of who the person is. We should no more attack or slam a person's race than we should attack a person's gender. I think that we need to begin talking about race openly, and without hesitation. The only hesitation we should have, is the hesitation to begin to react emotionally to what people say. That's the difficulty. Emotional detachment during a conversation is extremely difficult. However, when we learn how to bridge that gap, we will be able to talk openly and freely about race. And that is what we need. We need to be able to talk openly, and fairly. We must treat everyone, of every race, with equality. But the time has come to talk about it. Not tentatively, but boldly, breaking down the barriers and seeing that despite color, gender, age, etc. we are really only part of one race. The human race.