New Orleans violence: conversation's role?

[Pat Black]

	Provacative thoughts here Doug.  The only thing I might add is explicit talk about identity as I don't think you can build the types of relationships that you are calling for without intentional development or discovery of identity.  Seems like much of what serves as identity especially in individuals who experience oppression is a reflected identity.  In my own experience my early identity was based on being poor, abused, an immigran's child and a woman.  Those were all struggles in my life and they were the most visible and accessible parts of my identity.  I knew myself by what I was in opposition too and therefore my relationships were based in that.  I was in a positive relationship with whomever was in opposition to the same types of things as me and I was in negative relationship with whomever was not in the first group. When you are struggling for survival I thing this is a common response.  In that situation identity is based on surface attributes reflected back to you from those identitified as without pain or struggle. 
	So while I agree with what the ideal looks like I have a concrete suggestions on what needs to be added to get us there.  We need to be good listeners perhaps even containers for the expression of grieve and the stories of the experiences people have been while being othered within the social fabric.  We who  have access to identity not based on how we are less than need to be advocates  for social justice working to reweave the social fabric.  We also need to enhance our skills at reflecting what is deep and unique to an individual.  We need to train ourselves to see through reactionary identity expressions and reflect what is deep within and unigue to the person.  I look for that information in the physical expression of the person because I think that identity is embodied and precedes linguistic cognition.  
	I thank you for raising the topic.  I feel devastated by what is happening there and have to resist the impulse to highjack schools buses to take there to get people out.
pat black
Date:    Thu, 1 Sep 2005 11:36:42 -0400
From:    "Douglas D. Germann, Sr." <76066.515 at compuserve.com>
Subject: New Orleans violence: conversation's role?

Hi friends--

Gangs roaming the streets of New Orleans, people shooting at the
helicopters trying to evacuate the Super Dome: this is something directly
out of a disaster movie. People are becoming angry, but some are also
violent. Then there are stories of overwhelming sharing and caring and
sacrifice for other humans. The depths of humans and the human species is
brought out.

The looting, the gang turf wars--is there a role for conversation? The role
is up front, before the disaster comes, to help people see that they are
one with the others around them, trying to do the best they can, the others
are not other but their own kind, trying to help, nothing and no one to be
feared. This has to happen one and two at a time. No government program
will resolve it, but parents must talk to their toddlers, must sit and read
with them, must meet with other toddlers and parents, grade schools need to
get past the us vs them way of teaching, one person in front of the class
doling out the good stuff to the dummies with their minds out, kids must
learn from talking and sitting and doing with one another, pre-teens
working on projects, learning first hand that people can and do care,
learning how to be with others. Then, when the storm comes, they are ready
to help not harm, they do not see it as a chance to get even or get more
than their share, grab the gusto, but a chance to be their highest selves,
and that is together.


But even after the storm, we need to make the effort, hard as it might be,
to reach out to those inclined to violence and taking to seek their help,
to show how they are important and to see other people as important too. It
means approaching them not as an enemy but as one off the path.


Perhaps Lisa, from her work in the prisons, has much better ideas and
insight.


It has been coming home to me in many ways in the past week that there are
no easy solutions. To ask How is often to ask "What magic pill can I give
to this situation that will solve it once for all time?" and of course
there is no such thing. It takes hard work. More than that it takes
engagement.


And that over time. This is the eternal vigilance that George Washington
reminded us of 2 centuries ago. Engagement over time.


                              :-Doug. Germann

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