This post has only a marginal connection to genealogy, but thought it was worth posting here anyway. I originally posted this as a status message on my facebook page...
The Zimmerman trial and verdict has stirred up some very strong feelings in
our country. Was unwise judgement used, yes. Was it racially motivated?
Since I don’t personally know Zimmerman or Martin I can’t say what was
motivating either one of them.
I do know that people are
saying some pretty nasty things about each other because of this and
similar situations. I also know that slurs and judgements against anyone
is harmful.
People have done nasty things to other people in
the name of power, expansion, superiority, and sadly religion since the
beginning of human history. Many peoples have been oppressed throughout
history... Jews, Native Americans, African Slaves, Irish, Polish,
Chinese, Japanese, and on and on and on. It has not been just the “evil”
White Anglo Saxon Protestant Male who has done the oppressing. There
has been oppression of Whites by Whites. There has been oppression of
Blacks by Blacks. There has been oppression of Native Americans by other
tribes of Native Americans.
Is it ever right for one man to
oppress another? NO! But does fixating on past mistreatment fix the
situation? Again, no. All it does is to create more discord. So what is
the solution?
Like most people, my ancestry is from a variety
of nationalities. A DNA test showed not only Western European roots, but
that my ancestry also includes some Northern African roots. Thus I am
of the human race like everyone else in the world. And until we all
started believing that, and ACTING on that belief, nothing is going to
change
