Thank you, Nancy, for this wonderful opportunity to be in
worship and fellowship with you this evening and the great members of this temple.
I always knew that you would carry with
you from your many years of service to Lincoln Public Schools, and particularly
your role as an Equity Liaison where we connected the heart, head, and hands,
to continue to make sure that the issues of social justice stayed a part of
your core on this journey to live in peace and harmony some day. I am certain the members of this temple would give
an amen to that. You won’t allow folks to run or hide. I’d also like to thank my Pastor, Rev. Karla Cooper
and Congregation from Quinn Chapel A.M.E, and my extended family members for
their presence. As I was in the grocery
store this week, I was walking down the aisle and this can caught my attention.
It said Hate Spread. I was curious to
see what ingredients were in it and wanted to know how it gets spread. What’s that I hear? You thought it was no longer on the shelf. In recent months there has been a
re-manufacturing of it. Let’s look at the ingredients: Bigotry, Prejudice,
Selfishness, Stereotyping, Self-Righteousness, Disappointing, Bias,
Intolerance, Real, Racism.
Homophobia, Xenophobia, Islamaphobia, just us.
Interesting combination of ingredients. All leading to wet your appetite with hate,
racism, privilege, and prejudice. So one
might ask how does it get spread? It is
so simple. You walk into the break room or
you are walking in to church service and you engage in a parking lot
conversation. Someone you call a friend or
associate says to you, 'have you heard the one about a bunch of', you fill in
the blank. You know when you can’t put
yourself in the joke and get the same chuckle that it’s not appropriate; but,
the part you missed is you didn’t challenge it because it’s a friend or a colleague,
relative or the air was knocked out of you. Someone gets belittled in that conversation. So the prejudicial attitude becomes a main ingredient.
When I am not stopped, I get really
bold. I’ll drive past a place of worship,
see members of the congregation outside and I’ll hurl a name or two at them; or,
I’ll go to a restaurant and intentionally say loud enough they are here taking
all the jobs, let a bunch of, would let them in here? Don’t even drive that way--you know all of
them live there. So what was a whisper
now has voice. And as my voice gets
stronger, some folks begin to listen and look up to me and I start to think I really
am somebody. Ingredient 2. Seems pretty
harmless; but, left unattended, I start to harass folks anywhere I can find
them because of their religion, nationality, gender sexual orientation, race. And
it feels sooo good. And if a group I
think is beneath me is getting ahead of me, I start having multiple
conversations in my head about how I am going to get them.
Then my talk gets stronger and I start to act against people
and their property. I commit acts of
violence. If we look at Dylan Roof a few
months ago when his hate for African Americans boiled over into an act that
stunned not only South Carolina but also our nation as we saw nine members of a
black church snuffed away in the twinkling of an eye. In a space dedicated for worship and spreading
of the good news. Where He was offered
hospitality and hope. Those who were like-minded
made their presence known shortly after by desecrating other houses of worship.
We most recently have been reminded of
the terrorist who acts unannounced and challenges us to live a life under a
bushel because we fear going anywhere.
From Mizzou, to Yale, to Harvard, to Dartmouth, to Doane to
UNL, students are letting us know they're tired of being made invisible and
Black Lives Do Matter. While those who
are cowards use social media to spread their hate, a comment appeared in the
Lincoln Journal Star regarding the rally yesterday--"I’ll hate minorities
if I want and you can love their Asses for all I care". People aren’t all going to think the same way.
Your protesting won’t change that.
On the other hand, a State Senator commended students for
taking a stand and another commented things must be so good for students at UNL
they have to create controversy to make them relevant. To East High School where a student thought
it would be funny to single out a student who was wearing a hijab and say, 'Look
there’s a terriost'. Nebraska Nice you
might say.
Some of you will recall the power and controversy when
Rodger’s and Hammerstein penned these words:
You’ve got to be taught
to hate and fear
You’ve got to be
taught from year to year
It’s got to be
drummed in your dear little ear
You’ve got to be
taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes
are oddly made
And people whose skin
is a different shade
You’ve got to be
carefully taught before it’s too late
Before you are six or
seven or eight
To hate all the
people your relatives hate
You’ve got be
carefully taught
These words have stood the test of time and if we look at
some hate crime statistics we see some are still being carefully taught. 5,479 hate crimes were reported in 2014. Anti-LGBT, Anti-Black, Anti-Latino and Anti-Jewish
crimes have dropped; but, an uptick in Anti-Muslim from 135 to 154. Just imagine the number of incidents that
aren’t reported because victims assume nothing will happen.
Hatred and being bitter just keeps a person living a life
loaded with fear and paralyzed. Confusion commits itself along with darkness to
be a constant companion. The many acts
we have seen and will continue to see remind us of that thin line between love
and hate. It is required of us to love
from the very bottom of our tiptoes those who need love and may not love us
back. But when you can love, you have power and we know as a community of
believers it can transform an enemy into a friend. But we are also required to be patient.
So as we gather with family and friends over the next weeks and
celebrate our many rich traditions and love on one another, think about the
pain we have witnessed in 2015. In our
world, community and even though we are not direct victims, we are indirectly sharing
in the pain. In our humanness, we share a
brokenness and a sense of hopelessness. That
without an abundance of love for ones self and our neighbor, hate will continue
to destination unknown.
John Lennon said:
IMAGINE ALL THE
PEOPLE Living Life in Peace
We should leave here tonight with peace and love at our core and a commitment to
illuminate love in each encounter we have. And when we do this, it give us the mitigated gall
to Stand Up and Speak Out when we see an injustice. And we are then able to
Reach Out and Touch.
Dr. Marilyn Johnson-Farr
Dwight E. Porter Professor
of Education
Homophobia, Xenophobia, Islamaphobia, just us.
Interesting combination of ingredients. All leading to wet your appetite with hate,
racism, privilege, and prejudice. So one
might ask how does it get spread? It is
so simple. You walk into the break room or
you are walking in to church service and you engage in a parking lot
conversation. Someone you call a friend or
associate says to you, 'have you heard the one about a bunch of', you fill in
the blank. You know when you can’t put
yourself in the joke and get the same chuckle that it’s not appropriate; but,
the part you missed is you didn’t challenge it because it’s a friend or a colleague,
relative or the air was knocked out of you. Someone gets belittled in that conversation. So the prejudicial attitude becomes a main ingredient.
When I am not stopped, I get really
bold. I’ll drive past a place of worship,
see members of the congregation outside and I’ll hurl a name or two at them; or,
I’ll go to a restaurant and intentionally say loud enough they are here taking
all the jobs, let a bunch of, would let them in here? Don’t even drive that way--you know all of
them live there. So what was a whisper
now has voice. And as my voice gets
stronger, some folks begin to listen and look up to me and I start to think I really
am somebody. Ingredient 2. Seems pretty
harmless; but, left unattended, I start to harass folks anywhere I can find
them because of their religion, nationality, gender sexual orientation, race. And
it feels sooo good. And if a group I
think is beneath me is getting ahead of me, I start having multiple
conversations in my head about how I am going to get them.
Then my talk gets stronger and I start to act against people
and their property. I commit acts of
violence. If we look at Dylan Roof a few
months ago when his hate for African Americans boiled over into an act that
stunned not only South Carolina but also our nation as we saw nine members of a
black church snuffed away in the twinkling of an eye. In a space dedicated for worship and spreading
of the good news. Where He was offered
hospitality and hope. Those who were like-minded
made their presence known shortly after by desecrating other houses of worship.
We most recently have been reminded of
the terrorist who acts unannounced and challenges us to live a life under a
bushel because we fear going anywhere.
From Mizzou, to Yale, to Harvard, to Dartmouth, to Doane to
UNL, students are letting us know they're tired of being made invisible and
Black Lives Do Matter. While those who
are cowards use social media to spread their hate, a comment appeared in the
Lincoln Journal Star regarding the rally yesterday--"I’ll hate minorities
if I want and you can love their Asses for all I care". People aren’t all going to think the same way.
Your protesting won’t change that.
On the other hand, a State Senator commended students for
taking a stand and another commented things must be so good for students at UNL
they have to create controversy to make them relevant. To East High School where a student thought
it would be funny to single out a student who was wearing a hijab and say, 'Look
there’s a terriost'. Nebraska Nice you
might say.
Some of you will recall the power and controversy when
Rodger’s and Hammerstein penned these words:
You’ve got to be taught
to hate and fear
You’ve got to be
taught from year to year
It’s got to be
drummed in your dear little ear
You’ve got to be
taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes
are oddly made
And people whose skin
is a different shade
You’ve got to be
carefully taught before it’s too late
Before you are six or
seven or eight
To hate all the
people your relatives hate
You’ve got be
carefully taught
These words have stood the test of time and if we look at
some hate crime statistics we see some are still being carefully taught. 5,479 hate crimes were reported in 2014. Anti-LGBT, Anti-Black, Anti-Latino and Anti-Jewish
crimes have dropped; but, an uptick in Anti-Muslim from 135 to 154. Just imagine the number of incidents that
aren’t reported because victims assume nothing will happen.
Hatred and being bitter just keeps a person living a life
loaded with fear and paralyzed. Confusion commits itself along with darkness to
be a constant companion. The many acts
we have seen and will continue to see remind us of that thin line between love
and hate. It is required of us to love
from the very bottom of our tiptoes those who need love and may not love us
back. But when you can love, you have power and we know as a community of
believers it can transform an enemy into a friend. But we are also required to be patient.
So as we gather with family and friends over the next weeks and
celebrate our many rich traditions and love on one another, think about the
pain we have witnessed in 2015. In our
world, community and even though we are not direct victims, we are indirectly sharing
in the pain. In our humanness, we share a
brokenness and a sense of hopelessness. That
without an abundance of love for ones self and our neighbor, hate will continue
to destination unknown.
John Lennon said:
IMAGINE ALL THE
PEOPLE Living Life in Peace
We should leave here tonight with peace and love at our core and a commitment to
illuminate love in each encounter we have. And when we do this, it give us the mitigated gall
to Stand Up and Speak Out when we see an injustice. And we are then able to
Reach Out and Touch.
Dr. Marilyn Johnson-Farr
Dwight E. Porter Professor
of Education
this evening and the great members of this temple. I always knew that you would carry
with you from your many years of service to Lincoln Public Schools, and particularly your
role as an Equity Liaison where we connected the heart, head, and hands, to continue to
make sure that the issues of social justice stayed a part of your core on this journey to live
in peace and harmony some day. I am certain the members of this temple would give an
amen to that. You won’t allow folks to run or hide. I’d also like to thank my Pastor, Rev.
Karla Cooper and Congregation from Quinn Chapel A.M.E, and my extended family
members for their presence. As I was in the grocery store this week, I was walking down
the aisle and this can caught my attention. It said Hate Spread. I was curious to see what
ingredients were in it and wanted to know how it gets spread. What’s that I hear? You
thought it was no longer on the shelf. In recent months there has been a remanufacturing
of it. Let’s look at the ingredients: Bigotry, Prejudice, Selfishness, Stereotyping, Self-
Righteousness, Disappointing, Bias, Intolerance, Real, Racism.
Homophobia, Xenophobia, Islamaphobia, just us.
Interesting combination of ingredients. All leading to wet your appetite with hate, racism,
privilege, and prejudice. So one might ask how does it get spread? It is so simple. You
walk into the break room or you are walking in to church service and you engage in a
parking lot conversation. Someone you call a friend or associate says to you, 'have you
heard the one about a bunch of', you fill in the blank. You know when you can’t put
yourself in the joke and get the same chuckle that it’s not appropriate; but, the part you
missed is you didn’t challenge it because it’s a friend or a colleague, relative or the air was
knocked out of you. Someone gets belittled in that conversation. So the prejudicial attitude
becomes a main ingredient. When I am not stopped, I get really bold. I’ll drive past a place
of worship, see members of the congregation outside and I’ll hurl a name or two at them;
or, I’ll go to a restaurant and intentionally say loud enough they are here taking all the jobs,
let a bunch of, would let them in here? Don’t even drive that way--you know all of them live
there. So what was a whisper now has voice. And as my voice gets stronger, some folks
begin to listen and look up to me and I start to think I really am somebody. Ingredient 2.
Seems pretty harmless; but, left unattended, I start to harass folks anywhere I can find
them because of their religion, nationality, gender sexual orientation, race. And it feels sooo
good. And if a group I think is beneath me is getting ahead of me, I start having multiple
conversations in my head about how I am going to get them.
Then my talk gets stronger and I start to act against people and their property. I commit
acts of violence. If we look at Dylan Roof a few months ago when his hate for African
Americans boiled over into an act that stunned not only South Carolina but also our nation
as we saw nine members of a black church snuffed away in the twinkling of an eye. In a
space dedicated for worship and spreading of the good news. Where He was offered
hospitality and hope. Those who were like-minded made their presence known shortly
after by desecrating other houses of worship. We most recently have been reminded of the
terrorist who acts unannounced and challenges us to live a life under a bushel because we
fear going anywhere.
From Mizzou, to Yale, to Harvard, to Dartmouth, to Doane to UNL, students are letting us
know they're tired of being made invisible and Black Lives Do Matter. While those who are
cowards use social media to spread their hate, a comment appeared in the Lincoln Journal
Star regarding the rally yesterday--"I’ll hate minorities if I want and you can love their
Asses for all I care". People aren’t all going to think the same way. Your protesting won’t
change that.
On the other hand, a State Senator commended students for taking a stand and another
commented things must be so good for students at UNL they have to create controversy to
make them relevant. To East High School where a student thought it would be funny to
single out a student who was wearing a hijab and say, 'Look there’s a terriost'. Nebraska
Nice you might say.
Some of you will recall the power and controversy when Rodger’s and Hammerstein
penned these words:
You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear
You’ve got to be taught from year to year
It’s got to be drummed in your dear little ear
You’ve got to be taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes are oddly made
And people whose skin is a different shade
You’ve got to be carefully taught before it’s too late
Before you are six or seven or eight
To hate all the people your relatives hate
You’ve got be carefully taught
These words have stood the test of time and if we look at some hate crime statistics we see
some are still being carefully taught. 5,479 hate crimes were reported in 2014. Anti-LGBT,
Anti-Black, Anti-Latino and Anti-Jewish crimes have dropped; but, an uptick in Anti-Muslim
from 135 to 154. Just imagine the number of incidents that aren’t reported because victims
assume nothing will happen.
Hatred and being bitter just keeps a person living a life loaded with fear and paralyzed.
Confusion commits itself along with darkness to be a constant companion. The many acts
we have seen and will continue to see remind us of that thin line between love and hate. It
is required of us to love from the very bottom of our tiptoes those who need love and may
not love us back. But when you can love, you have power and we know as a community of
believers it can transform an enemy into a friend. But we are also required to be patient.
So as we gather with family and friends over the next weeks and celebrate our many rich
traditions and love on one another, think about the pain we have witnessed in 2015. In our
world, community and even though we are not direct victims, we are indirectly sharing in
the pain. In our humanness, we share a brokenness and a sense of hopelessness. That
without an abundance of love for ones self and our neighbor, hate will continue to
destination unknown.
John Lennon said:
IMAGINE ALL THE PEOPLE Living Life in Peace
We should leave here tonight with peace and love at our core and a commitment to
illuminate love in each encounter we have. And when we do this, it give us the mitigated
gall to Stand Up and Speak Out when we see an injustice. And we are then able to Reach Out
and Touch.
Dr. Marilyn Johnson-Farr
Dwight E. Porter Professor
of Education
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