Sundown Towns

I just read an interesting article on sundown towns. These were communities where African Americans were, ahem, encouraged to leave town before sunset. Often, signs were posted near the town borders bearing messages like, “Nigger don’t let the sun set on you in [insert town name here].”

The article is essentially a review of Sundown Towns: A Hidden Dimension of American Racism. By James W. Loewen. These communities should not be forgotten. I have had many conversations with well-meaning people who assert that racism is a thing of the past and that we’re “beyond all that” these days. I beg to differ. Alabama didn’t repeal its anti-miscegenation law until the year 2000, after all. Racism is alive and well in the hearts and minds of many, if not officially enshrined in law. We must continue to fight against intolerance of all stripes if we are to live up to our potential as one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

For more info on fighting hatred, try Tolerance.org.

Speak Up!

Tolerance.org has a good pdf of proper responses to everyday bigotry. It’s called Speak Up! and it’s worth a read.

Acting White

I had a lot of trouble when I was younger dealing with the charge of “acting white.” I speak clearly, use standard American grammar, I am well-read, and I do well in school. Therefore I was sometimes accused, by blacks and whites alike, of trying to act too “white.” I’ve never understood the need for some blacks to define themselves as uneducated, to never strive for anything beyond street toughness. And it seems the issue has not gone away, as noted in this article on Tolerance.org. When will we learn?