You may have heard of the children’s story “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” It’s the short tale by Hans Christian Andersen about two weavers who promise an emperor a new suit of clothing that’s invisible to those who are unfit for their positions, stupid or incompetent. When the emperor marches down the street in these new non-existent clothes, no one dares to tell him he is naked for fear they will look stupid. Eventually, a child points out the obvious.
Society in America in 2015 seems to share the same concern as the adults in that story. We are expected to ignore the obvious for fear someone will say we’re stupid.
Rachel Dolezal, the recently resigned leader of the Spokane, Washington, NAACP told the world she was black. She complained of the discrimination she suffered as a black woman. She fabricated stories of her minority childhood and lied on official documents. When her parents revealed the truth, that Ms. Dolezal is white, she hardly even blinked. Instead she made the rounds on talk shows explaining she self-identifies as black. She’s clearly not, but we’re supposed to consider her “choice” as reasonable and rationale.
If you walked through a grocery store check out anytime in the last two weeks you couldn’t miss the latest issue of Vanity Fair. It featured Bruce Jenner, the 1976 Men’s Olympic Decathlon gold medal winner, in a dress and make up. Like Ms. Dolezal, Bruce Jenner has decided he is something other than what his DNA says he is. Bruce Jenner self identifies as a woman, and we’re supposed to accept it as normal. We’re watching a freak show, but unless you stay silent someone will say you’re ignorant.
Our society pretends black-on-black crime doesn’t happen. Our media and minority community leaders scream at the top of their lungs when the one pulling the trigger is white and the victim is African American, but the silence is deafening when both perpetrator and victim are black.
A 2012 study by the Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention reported that in 2010 black youths committed six times more murders, three times more rapes, 10 times more robberies and three times more assaults than did their white counterparts. Similar statistics were released by the FBI in the Uniform Crime Reports. Those resorts said that while black youths make up just 16 percent of the youth population, they accounted for 52 percent of juvenile violent crime arrests, including 58 percent for homicide and 67 percent for robbery.
If you dare talk about it, however, you are a racist. Ignore the obvious problems or risk carrying the label of hater.
We pretend a child having both a mom and a dad doesn’t matter. Circumstances sometimes dictate single parents raise a child, but a skyrocketing number of babies are being born out of wedlock by choice. More than 40 percent of all babies are born outside of marriage. Among blacks nearly three out of four infants are born to a single mom. Two out of three Native Americans give birth with no dad in the picture. Statistics clearly show children of single parents face greater challenges in education, economics and developing relationships, yet we are told to embrace this social change or else we’re judgmental. Ignore the real-life impact on the kids and the long-term impact on society.
Politics isn’t immune either. Hillary Rodham Clinton pretends she can relate to average Americans and their financial woes. She claims she and Bill were broke when they left the White House. Broke despite the fact he made $3.2 million as president over eight years and had no mortgage, no transportation costs and no food costs. Either she’s lying or they are incredibly bad money managers. And how many average Americans have book deals and millions in speaking fees awaiting them when they leave their job? But don’t challenge her account. If you do you’re sexist.
Why do we ignore the obvious? Why do we pretend a white woman can decide she’s really black? Why do we pretend a man masquerading as a woman is perfectly normal or that a presidential candidate fabricating life’s challenges is acceptable?
Let’s hope there is a child somewhere in America who, like in Hans Christian Andersen’s story, will stand up and say what no one else dares. The future success of the United States depends on it.
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