By Alvin Leaphart, Jesup, Ga. | I read constantly of the racial strife that this presidential election has caused. I feel that most of the strife is created among those of little education and life experience by people of both races who have a financial interest in keeping the differences alive.
Of course, it is puzzling that a great deal of the stimulus has been by a GOP candidate from the privileged class of New York, Donald Trump. What is amazing, as well as amusing, is that the strife has erupted in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, and California. In the South where everyone seems to think it exists, it seems that everyone gets along fairly well.
In the South there has always been a close relationship between the races. Over several hundred years, there evolved a set of unwritten “Rules of Engagement” adhered to by both races. These rules were somewhat one sided but maintained a stable community. In order for the Civil Rights movement to be successful these rules of engagement had to be done away with, so the emergence of “Civil Disobedience.” We had a cultural revolution in this country. In most of the world, when the revolution is over, new rules are set up to govern society, and civility returns. In the South, because of the close relationship between the races, this has not been too hard to accomplish, although we still have a way to go.
In the rest of the country where communities effectively segregated themselves for over a hundred years, such as New York, Boston, Detroit and Los Angeles, is where most of the strife occurs. In these areas there is virtually no real personal relationships existing among the various racial and cultural groups, except among those in the upper financial and educational strata. No one has any basic understanding of the others’ thinking or motivations, all through their failure to socially interact.
After I served in the Coast Guard, I attended law school in Atlanta. After passing the bar, I worked as a law clerk for a Fulton Superior Court judge. This was in the 60s during the Civil Rights movement.
Leb’s, a restaurant on Lucky Street, was popular with businessman for lunch. One day a number of Civil Rights activists came in and took up the counter and ordered lunch. They were refused. Police arrested a number of people, mostly activists.
The next day the same thing happened with arrests. The third day they were back. There were a few words exchanged but most customers said, “To hell with it . . . I’m not going to let this spoil my lunch,” and ignored the demonstrators. Shortly after that, all the restaurants in Atlanta were successfully integrated, along with the states’ colleges and universities; and later the public schools.
The “Rules” had been upgraded. I’m not saying it was done without protests and some violence, but in a short time it was all over but the “cussing.” And that was generally by the unenlightened on both sides, prodded by those, who made a living from the chaos they promoted.
In Georgia, race relations, while not perfect, are good, especially when compared with the rest of the country . . . and the world. There appears to be a growing basic, tolerant, and friendly atmosphere where our two cultures are beginning to mesh. Time, and education, where the children are taught to read and enjoy it, will solve most of the problems.
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