To Higher Ground

The polarization of our society is accelerating, sadly, not diminishing. As the protests over police violence against minorities continue and the political stakes rise in advance of November's elections, many are clearly tempted to take sides and demonize those who disagree with them.

At times like this, excess can become the norm:

* Two progressive Brooklyn lawyers are arrested for allegedly throwing an incendiary device into a vacant police car.

* President Donald Trump labels peaceful protestors "domestic terrorists."

* Muriel Bowser, the mayor of D.C., has the words Black Lives Matter painted in large yellow letters on the pavement outside the White House.

* Right-wing conspiracy theorists circulate preposterous rumors, including that George Floyd is still alive.

But cooler heads speak out as well: 

* Melania Trump, the First Lady, says: "As a nation, let's focus on peace, prayers & healing,"

* Roger Goodell, the head of the NFL, reverses course and recognizes the rights of players to take a knee to protest racism and police violence during the playing of the national anthem.

What is at stake amid this turmoil and extreme rhetoric is the soul of our civil society. We need not agree about very much to nevertheless respect one another and defend each other's freedom of speech.

In this regard, journalists have a responsibility. Our code is to report stories fairly and accurately, and to do so in a transparent manner with attribution, so anyone can check the fairness and the veracity of our sources and the documents we cite.

I'm personally disappointed in the recent tendency of nationally recognized journalists to use their platforms to take uncompromising positions and make gratuitous pronouncements. Sarcasm and sermons are not helpful in this environment.

The line between making things better and making things worse is razor thin. That D.C. Mayor Bowser had that street renamed is a lovely and righteous act; that she chose to rub Trump's nose in it  with the huge sign seems excessive and unnecessary.

There is a false choice being offered in many quarters: That we either support the protestors and oppose the police, or the opposite. Why? There is no rational argument against supporting both the protestors and the police. The vast majority of them all are good people doing what they believe to be right.

This reminds me of the Vietnam era, when demonstrators were told they could not both oppose the war and support the troops. Those who made that claim were patently wrong, and the war ended when a coalition of anti-war groups, including the Vietnam Veterans Against the War, prevailed over the U.S. government.

Once again, the government, at least the administration, is on the wrong side of history. But social change in a democracy requires building a majority. That work is peaceful and it is in process right now. We will find out whether it is successful come November.

***

The number of new cases of Covid-19 is spiking. This cannot surprise anyone, given the large public gatherings that have become routine in this country and also around the world. As people rightfully march to oppose oppression, the risks of spreading the disease increase as well.

If, as I believe, the emergence of the virus is related to global climate change, this is a preview of what the world could look like if humanity cannot unite to fight a much greater enemy than those who happen to support a rival political party.

In fact, under the most likely scenario, democracy might not survive climate change. Freedom may prove more fragile than many of us hope it will be.

Or perhaps not. Martin Luther King, Jr.,'s greatest speech , IMHO, was not the "I have a dream" performance in Washington, D.C. but his prophetic sermon his last night alive in Memphis:

"...(S)omewhere I read of the freedom of assembly. Somewhere I read of the freedom of 

speech. Somewhere I read of the freedom of press. Somewhere I read that the greatness of America is 

the right to protest for right. And so just as I say, we aren't going to let dogs or water hoses turn us 

around, we aren't going to let any injunction turn us around. We are going on...

"...Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!"

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