Could it be because we simply will not let it? We want to end racism, but we just won't let it go. As people age, we learn from our past, and we grow. We preach that who we are today comes from who we were yesterday, and that living this life is about learning, overcoming and being a better person today. But how can I be a better person today when no one will let go of who I was yesterday? Yesterday I was naive, ignorant and inconsiderate of others. But today, I have learned to be kind, understanding and compassionate of others. But this is not good enough for our society, I am still held accountable for who I was yesterday, you will not let me change nor see me for who I have become, and it hurts!
Yesterday I hurled insults against many cultures, races and religions, but today, I walk beside them ALL fighting against the old me of yesterday. The me I am ashamed to admit I was, embarrassed by things I said and did, but also glad it is behind me and thankful for the person I have become today because of it. I am proud and humble of who I am today and I now see people through their actions and their own self-preservation, not through their color, culture or religion.
But none of that really matters now, once you found out who I was yesterday, you turned against me, labeled me and placed me opposing you. Despite my growth, I have now been labeled as something I no longer stand for and not for who I am today. I am judged for who I was yesterday, 25 years ago, in an old photo, or a recalled conversation or a social media post. You have judged me unfairly, which is the exact concept that fuels racism. I ask you, how can you hold me accountable for who I was yesterday, without even looking at who you have become today?
When you hold people to their yesterday, how are they supposed to live today?
Jo King
