We have a responsibility to continuously improve our institutions and systems to make them more effective for a modern world. It is in the best interest of society for our systems and institutions to reasonably update based upon modern thinking and certain core national values. That willingness to change when it is needed leads to institutional relevance and future trust among the American population. That can have a positive effect on society (Failure to change and update will likely have a negative impact on society as we have seen in recent civil unrest, acceptance of domestic extremism, and other issues.)
As some of you know my family and I have been targeted by those who had something to gain by exploiting bigotry and hate in a way that created dangerous situations (In more than one instance) that could under the wrong circumstances led to serious death or harm. Yet this isn't really as much about me as it is about our value system as a society and how we apply our core social contracts and rights equitably (In some ways indicating whether we are a nation of universal peoples with a single purpose or two large nations thinly connected by window dressing. I advocate for a single nation with shared purpose but there are those that are intentionally trying to create separations in our communities and on a national level by exploiting hate for personal gain.)
Its not so much that there are individuals out there that hate those with Muslim sounding names and Black kids because they have always been there in one form or another lurking in the corners (The targets of hate done matter and can include Asians, Jews, Mexicans, Whites, etc.. Anyone can hate! Its easy. Just project everything you feel frustrated about life onto some poor suspecting soul that is trying to take care of/protect his family, or buy groceries, or perhaps just driving to work.). The concern is that they (They is an important distinction here. What does "they" mean? An embedded network?) are willing to do it on a coordinated level, with approval of some local officials, within an existing narrative of hate (language) and within a social context of support (group supported hate).
We sort of run into a situation where if I'm only a tiny, small, sliver 10% correct that still comprises real risks for others. There are higher risks for future targets and victims (In history I'm usually closer to correct then wrong but that doesn't mean I am right. The data indicate that there is more going on here then just poor values and bad manners.). From what I can tell these behaviors didn't just get invented/learned in this situation because the observed reaction had a different root. They existed prior, they were good at it, and they knew just how to engage in a campaign to delegitimize and dehumanize others (Likely this group has gotten away with bullying, stepping on the rights of others, and setting up their own local good old boy networks for some time. It would also be an indication that such behaviors were not addressed prior because of lack of knowledge, fear, malaise or something else. The social benefits of being "super cool" and connected to sympathizers and supporters!)
There has been an atmosphere among some local ex-sports groups and socially associated local officials that is ripe for these behaviors to continue to occur without being addressed adequately (There is lots of research on patterned behaviors.) Its a context that I believe most of their members are not fully aware of how their behaviors are impacting others and are caught in a self-justifying hate narrative and likely to continue down the same/similar path (...of course by ensuring the victims are as much responsibility for their behavior as they can make them. That becomes increasingly more disdainful if any closely associated officials acted like a legal counselor in support of that friend network. That would be another indication that such behaviors were willful and there is a good chance there are lots of other people who may have experienced something similar. The perceived morality of using official authority and powers entrusted by the community to 1. help ones friends financial gain, 2. set up racial/religious stratification, and 3. circumvent the intention of law.) A study in the Journal of Governance helps us better understand the dangers of permissive attitudes and lack of accountability and its inherent dangers. "Corruption is associated with permissive attitudes to violence even after controlling for the perceived legitimacy of the police and courts." (Fillanders & van der Werf, 2021). The study uses a concept called Moral Foundations Theory which tries to explain the social foundations of some values and perceptions (This is related to "Moral Conscious" of systems I talked about prior. Meaning we always try and do what is best, fair, and right.). It is one study and isn't the whole story. However, its findings are interesting and it has rung somewhat true in other areas (i.e. corruption around Detroit and associated markers of that corruption.). The problem is inherent within the disparate treatment itself (I cannot vouch for the study and just searched it out. It does sort of raise a hair on my neck. People in our world justify all types of behaviors but they don't always think of what the long term goal is. )
*The articles are important because it not only helps people think but also try and find solutions where others have failed to think. It is just a piece of the social conversation of where we go from the here as we ponder the possibilities of a brighter future. If you disagree with something its ok because I might actually agree with you as well. Yet....hopefully it still got you to think. What is the answer?
Here is one essential issue. I want to be clear that my goal isn't to put anyone in jail, ruin anyone's career, or make some anti-police comment (I support police 100% and civil rights 110%. Unless someone comes up with a better system then I continue to support in general the institution of policing as long as it has the capacity to correct itself when blatant violations of purpose occur. That may include training, policy changes, community adjustments, removing "bad apples" or any thing else.)
(As a side note: The mending of perspective through adequate problem solving and resolution on policing is something our politicians haven't figure out yet. Its a problem that is hard to solve because of the highly skewed and often combative nature of American politics that sometimes feels less about serving the American people and more about promoting one's political position through "yes sir" and "yes ma'am" integrity of individual thought. In other words, its likely the problem will linger for some time until their is a change of heart.....)
Anyway....
Here are my morning thoughts while I'm having coffee. The next time someone is hurt, has a complaint, or some other calamity should happen then upon whose shoulders should that fall on morally? (The standard approach of blaming the victim is contributing to the problem.) We talk a lot about community but then sort of fail to take into account the long-term health of that community by having systems based on shared values instead of good old boy networks with racial and religious exclusionary overtones (BTW there is some research to support that good old boy networks like this could be one explanation why some localities are not growing as much as expected. Seriously, there is studies on it. ). If we are a community, then we should be a single community (Someone has already said we are not a single community and the reason why my kids are being put in harms way is because we are Muslim. They say that with little knowledge of who we are and even less knowledge of who they themselves have become. Community is important so lets not split it based on shallow loyalties and shallower values!)
There is a path through this racial and religious mess on a local and national scale. It is a path that I believe allows for healthier social learning of appropriate transcendental generation-to-generation values, better ensures that certain elements within the community (..and its institutions. i.e. local college hiring practices and local policing practices of at least one department.) are redirected toward their stated purposes (While I understand that those who caused the problem might not be gleeful that the free train ride of doing what they want to whomever they want is coming to a close it is a necessity in a system that seeks to increase public trust.)
Here are a few suggestions. Of course there are likely other solutions, ideas, thoughts and comments by others.
1.) The initial perpetrators have mental health review and counseling. They have shown they are a risk to others and willing to coordinate targeted behaviors. Its not about jail, its about accountability and helping them in the long run to deal with the underlining issues that led to hate (Contrary to modern legal opinion, while someone may have the choice to deal with mental health issues "when they feel ready" that should change when you put your mental health issues on others in a harmful way. If that projection is little they still have an obligation to deal with it but if they are highly manipulative in a way that seeks to cause harm to others I no longer believe they should get help "when they feel like it". i.e. MI Track and Solve. The problem is such people often avoid accountability and they are unlikely to ever "feel like it" but still pose a risk. The more they don't feel like it, the more they might need to go. Variance of opinion isn't an issue, it is aggression that needs mental health help. 🙊)
2.) The departments that were initially misled but corrected should draw as many improvement lessons as they can from the situation. The department that persisted in supporting their friends and engaging in seriously dangerous and questionable behavior should go through a series of reforms to protect public interest. I'm making a leap of faith assumption that societal stakeholders have a vested interest in ensuring institutions function in accordance with our first world constitutional standards versus third world clannish mannerisms.
3.) An audit of the financial incentives of hate. I have said this prior about local and national hate. Those who promote it not only likely have mental health issues but also there are other incentives. Financial incentives often being an obvious one. There are those who blindly rage their hate on others and there are those who are strategic and/or subtle about their hate. The strategic hater being the more dangerous of the two. The raging hater can be detected and helped. The strategic hater hides their values for fear of being publicly chastised but then misuse their positions to make decisions that harm many people systemically over many years (Systemic bigotry).
4.) The local college that based hiring decisions on these good old boy networks, hate narratives through rumors, and what appears to be highly discriminatory practices (From what I can tell the school initially called to hire me for a adjunct position teaching Business Law but once they found out I was the "Muslim guy" with Black kids their friends didn't like, they ghosted me. No one has told me any different and it looks like that is a leading explanation. I followed up through email to the president and HR department but like many minorities "stone wall" is the method of choice. Its funny, most of the people who have known me for years find me to be a pretty nice guy. While I'm upset people can blatantly violate our laws and norms with impunity, my goal is to help improve the functioning of the system from future defaults. I'm saddened that we can't walk the talk in our values and that we are limiting the future of our youth and college students because some of the administrators have hiring preferences that have little to do with qualifications. I don't even really care about the position but I do care by how they handled it and what decision led to an abrupt 360 degree change and how that might be harming other applications and in turn their student population. It shows a serious lack of professionalism and appears to be associated in tertiary with a wider psuedo-cleansing campaign. Let us not fail in correcting that for other future faculty that may be abruptly discarded based on superficial and illegal criteria. Its a solid enough explanation for a good look. 🤷)
5. Review of other community complaints. There are some pretty serious community complaints and issues as it relates to some associated members of this clan. I think its important not to force a hand over victim's mouths and smother their voice just because we don't want to take a cursory look into the problem (I cannot tell you if they are true or not. I can only say some of them sound plausible.).
The law is the law but the moral question remains, "Is this ok"? Whether or not they actually succeed is a different argument. It is an issue that they tried to cause harm and they were within a social network of people who supported such behaviors without question (Showing their own values and capacities.) That same network acted on misinformation and didn't stop to think about the targets in anyway (They even got kids intentionally involved). More important, some of these people were officials with duties and that led to the default of more than one institution and possibly tainted the long-term value of a third.
There are no legitimate laws, in the spirit they were created, that would allow such behaviors to be sanctioned and normalized. There cannot be different rules for different people (i.e. minorities know they sometimes get short sticked on justice. Not every time but enough poor decisions to create collective conscious awareness of the occasional misuse of some of our institutions. Don't believe me? Get out of the homogeneous world in which you live and go talk to some "other" people; the other half of society. Just listen.). What also bother me is that the kid they involved in harmful behavior is a black genius and it was their racism and bigotry that nearly derailed that because they wanted something selfish and low (They discounted his life with the tacit approval of some officials and then covered it up by double down on cleansing behaviors and delegitimization of the concerned parent. Delegitimization is such a common strategy in whistleblower and fights against corruption.). The law is a tool. It is a written codification of our values in tool form (carrot or hammer). How we use those laws to either build a more inclusive society or reinforce the exclusive ones of the past is a long term legal and social negotiation. For example, one might end segregation officially on a legal level but two systems may continue to function in shadow of each other (i.e. one indication might be the recent civil unrest during the last protests based on slightly different expectations of justice.). I advocate for the law to be married with wisdom, moral conscious and truth to ensure its compass always points true north. People trust things that consistently tell the truth and try and do the right thing (They trust it because it values them. Watch when people argue about race and religion and you always see "better than though" insults being thrown. )
What I can tell the next victim is likely different then what others can tell that victim (If they dropped the ball when poor behaviors were obvious would any of them have any real moral authority to counsel anyone or make decisions over these issues? Think about it...from an integrity standpoint. Mistake can sometimes be corrected but an intentional mistakes does not go unnoticed by society.). I believe I can tell that person I understand their pain, have been there myself, and have used a good portion of my life fighting for things I believe in. If it upsets you, and you don't feel its fair, then don't let them gag you. There are likely others and you have a responsibility to society to brush off the dirt and get back in there! You have a responsibility to society to ensure they come into alignment with our professed American values and social contracts. Its risky to have values in some environments. Chances are that you will likely lose because the forces are often way more powerful than most victims can handle, you will lose many things for truth. From financial to reputation they are going to throw everything they can at you and anyone who supports you to further that culture of fear. Even with such a heavy burden your choice on which path to take (submit or challenge) will determine who you are and your contribution to the advancement of society (Because they are most likely to lose is one of the reasons why they were chosen to be the designated victims of hate in the first place. Some of it does come down to general access to influence decision making. That is also why ostracization, hate narratives, and misuse of official power are tools to maintain separations in society and thus access to decision making. Access to new ideas information leads to better informed decisions and that means those who manipulate the system will be exposed.). As target, you can put up a large red stop sign and speed bump to warn the drivers of hate speeding down the same road through self reflecting back to them a more accurate version of their behavior (versus parking in front of people's homes, following them home, pulling over kids, blocking opportunities or anything else design to establish alpha positions. Some of it does come from a primal desire to dominate people outside one's tribe/clan/hate network so as to maintain positions of dominance. This is where corruption becomes likely when the law becomes a kind of clan promoting enforcement tool with no conception of the wider purpose for it). It is a duty to challenge those things that are not functioning and blatantly wrong (and praise those who did it the right way). People can do that by solving problems, talking about it, creating shared perspectives, forgiving, accountability and improvement. It is how we improve the entire system through challenge and growth. I can tell that person that "doing the right thing" comes with lots of risks. Check in with yourself to be sure your ready to take the road less traveled as a truer measure of choice and character.
What is the right thing to do here? Not so easy to answer when its American and "American" so lets be sure we keep drawing people together and tackling outbursts of coordinated hate when they occur. Let's make decisions for the future (over the horizon) and in the best interest of society (the long term interests). However, I think finding a pathway through situations like this is important because they create new trends or contribute to the existence of poor trends. I think people will need to figure out for themselves what they believe and why it is so important to create shared perspectives (So we are all rowing in the same direction with trust, integrity and honor). That is how you build great nations! Especially a nation on the cusp of adapting up to higher social, economic, and political platform that may offer opportunities never presented before (Maybe not. 🤷).
........page turn........
Gillanders, R. & van der Werf, L. (January 26th, 2021). Corruption experiences and attitudes to political, interpersonal, and domestic violence. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/gove.12570
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