Muslims, Jews, Blacks, Hispanics, Asians and others are sometimes seen with disdain among some peoples in our society. Even when crimes are committed we sometimes turn a blind eye and support hate groups through cultural, racial, social and religious familiarity. Standing for the Constitution and what makes Americans "Americans" is important for the long term health and development of our democracy.
First let me say I don't actually advocate for special treatment of minorities or anyone else; regardless of background (I recognize the pain of the past but have my eyes on the horizon toward the future.). It's about equal and fair treatment with equal rights for all citizens. A wiser and more universal system of management and existence.
We won't compete effectively as a country against our enemies/challengers if we treat our population disparity (Think about it for a second regardless of your bias; assuming you have some. Not everyone does!). We must encourage the best and brightest in our society to rise if we hope to develop the human capital that will push our innovative and economic capacities to maximum performance.
This becomes increasingly important as extremism rises in our hometowns and on a national level as our leaders and officials fumble with a course of direction. We are beginning to understand the hate phenomenon and developing tactics to deal with it. That takes time, honesty, science and evidence based decision making (Party politics will only exacerbate the situation.)
My family and I have been targeted by a hate group (Its a real grey area as some of the members just engage in poor behaviors and some actual hate behaviors.) that for the most part was giving a free pass until it became untenable to continue without serious consequences to themselves (Few cared about the targets but more about whether the perpetrators were going to get in trouble. See how we sometimes use the wrong anchors in our decision making. Implicit issues.). False police reports, blocking opportunities, parking and following home with undercover cars, pulling over kids, ostracism, defamation of character, picking fights, name calling and general group mischief.
Even though the misinformation was discovered to be false a minority of members continued forward in support of their good old boy networks (Based in their once mediocre sports playing 20+ years ago. Some were a little better but most were just ok.). It isn't as blatant as before but continues forward in microaggressions (i.e. the cackling lady that doesn't want people like me part of "her" clubs so encourages the local "stud muffins" to get upset. Of which one almost caused a conflict and is likely the same person that was staring/intimidating my kids in the parking lot at the local Menards .).
Such group behaviors eventually led to a default across two institutions through these social connections (possibly three) so I have earned the right to talk about it. Not to mention I'm probably inadvertently one of the most knowledgeable people on such topics in the country; maybe globally (It depends on how you look at it. Yes I have a Muslim sounding name so I likely seen by some as knowing nothing. I.e. a low IQ or abilities. Please see above for description of why that perception exists. There is more to it than that would solidify that awareness/knowledge.)
Second, it is incumbent on any leader in this country to stand for certain principles if they wish to be seen as leaders in our history books. Having a positive outcome in hindsight means have foresight to stand for something greater than yourself. Historical artifacts often tell a different story than the way people perceived issues at that time (Sorry I like history).
As extremism rises we see some of our leadership struggling with their own personal values (Supporting poor candidates, following/encouraging bad behaviors, and in many cases working counter to their own deeper religious/personal values because they are expected to do so for political/social reasons.) This is why we shouldn't be giving important positions to people who are "connected" despite not having the moral fortitude, intelligence, foresight and qualifications to be in those positions (See need for best and brightest above.)
Extremism is about forcing ones will on others without regard to the laws or values of a country. The more they can control through fear and intimidation, and the more officials they can convert to their support, the more power they can amass (See downing of two institutions above through social networks. Think about how that can happen on a national level. Think of the dangers to the "wrong type" of Americans)
So it is an important moral imperative for myself, any "other" that visits/invests, potential prior victims, and in some ways our nation to find a way through such hate behaviors to find a positive outcome. This is why I advocate for those two institutions to reform and the perpetrators who launched the network to be required to have mental health help and a review of the financial incentives. I believe this to be reasonable and fair request for such behaviors (There was signs of mental health, distorted logic, and uncontrollable rage that didn't care less of the consequences on others. It still continues on today.).
We can hope our wider institutions can correct the distortions if there is further default of local institutions. Without these checks and balances hate is given a free pass where it can grow like a disease in a way that makes good recruiting ground for other hate based extremists (i.e. read about attempt to kidnap and execute Michigan Governor. I know the group member don't see themselves this way and as far as I know not this way but their words, comments and actions can spark lone wolf radicals. There are some within this group who do lean a little more violent. They are teaching others that such behaviors are acceptable and "normalized". To them, the person they call "the bitch" and the mixed race kids they call "nigga babies" are the problem; of course not themselves. A lack of insight into their own miscued values. It should be noted that most are good people but have a distorted sense of self and low boundaries so they are in many ways required to have strict social adherence to their group and any hate opinions/values it holds.).
So I seek to find a win-win situation that not only resolves this problem but ensures that other people within the community (or minority visitors or anyone one of their members don't like) don't fall prey to these types of group behaviors (If it can happen once it can happen again! It likely happened in the past based on some community complaints.). That is really hard for some of our leaders and institutions to overcome as decisions seek to placate hate. From my knowledge, hate cannot be placated as it simply grows and festers through the percolation of social opinion.
What is the best solution here? That is really tough but what we can say is that there existential risks to the targets of such behaviors in the long run without some level of accountability (Think of how threats to IRS, judges, politicians, intellectuals, etc... could become worse if our politicians and institutions don't stand united. Placation breeds further use of such tactics as fear tactics gain power/utility.). That accountability can be very light and with empathy but it shouldn't be a free pass (I don't think it was a total free pass but it doesn't appear that it was taken seriously be some local officials. Some actually did the right thing and I applaud their foresight and knowledge of the bigger purpose of their positions. It goes to show you that a silent majority want a better world and they want things to be done in an inclusive way. Most are too afraid to speak up or encourage a better world for fear of retaliation. See how this can create a downslide in our democracy?)
Some might wonder what my strategy is going forward. I will be polite (not passive), kind, developing a learning opportunity that might be worthwhile to apply in other places, and encourage those who are struggling with self-identity and mental health to seek the help they need before they damage more people (Remember they put kids intentionally in harms way for personal gain and then bragged about it in many ways to their friends.). It will also be a good opportunity to improve on our systems to develop stronger methods of management and training to ensure such institutions don't default again in the future.
(...I'm not as "evil" as some people think. I'm actually a pretty good flawed soul....but the only difference is I recognize it. Beware of those who are "perfect"! and "better than". If you have existing bias you probably won't recognize this. Perfectly imperfect or imperfectly perfect? 😏) In one ear and out the other for those who should be the champions of our values...but history doesn't really cater to ignorance. We have to tackle our issues and consistently look to be an adaptive learning organization/nation by focusing on solutions. Without that we will be bested by others. Wiser minds will understand what I'm saying and how choices lead to outcomes. Blind eyes and placating hate is not the right path forward and strategically leads to no good outcomes in the long run (It only seems that way in the short run. Its a strategic as well as moral failure. If I'm saying something that is incorrect or doesn't make sense I am willing to adjust my opinions but can't do so based on what I know and have seen as of today's date. Unlike those who tried to commit harm, I actually tweak my opinion based on new evidence. I have to admit, it would be difficult to overcome the pieces of data/information based on conjecture and pro-social group opinions alone. I'm typically in the ballpark. Something our leaders should also learn from....evidence based management. )
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