I realize many people don't know much about TFA and what I'm doing here, and I'd love to get into that right now, but it's already 11 and I have to be up at the butt crack of dawn and I already have a lot of daily thoughts I want to record, so Google it for now, and know that a detailed and personalized description is coming.
Something Gheremy and I realized today...So, at first when you get to Induction/Institute you love everyone. You think, "We're all just so like-minded and professional and respectful and fun, I just think everyone from TFA is the best ever!" Then you start getting to know people, and things shift a little. You're pedestal that you've put these people on lowers a little. Maybe you just realize they're human like you, I don't know. I'm not trying to be negative, I just want to record my thoughts during this process as honestly as possible. Here's an example...there's this girl from Napa Valley who thinks racism does not exist in the great state of California. She only saw it as she moved farther and farther south. She's here to fix our racism problem, y'all.
Yes, the south does have a problem with racism. Dear Lord Jesus we know this. If we know anything about ourselves, it's this. We know about Birmingham where we hosed those people. We know about Little Rock where we said you can go to school, just not here. We know about Memphis where we killed the dreamer (but not the dream, baby, not the dream). We know, Little Girl from Napa Valley, we know this. It is ingrained in us. We have our white guilt, and we're working with it. The issue is not whether we know about our problem with racism, but whether you know about your problem with racism. Girl, just because you told us your best friend is black doesn't mean the people from wine country aren't racist. You need to take a moment and re-examine. We southerners know. We southerners who are worth our salt will take this knowledge ant turn it into TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGE.
In light of that, I'll move into Southern Pride, something else I've been thinking about here. As many of you may know, I did my BFA thesis work on my experience as a southerner and what I think southerners value and the natural beauty I've found here. What I'm having trouble communicating to other people (especially those not from the south) is what that pride looks like to me. I feel like when I say the phrase "southern pride" people think rebel flags, cowboy boots, wranglers, big trucks, chewing tobacco, cowboy boots, and general things I hate.
This is the image I DO NOT want people to get:
I want people to think the things about the south that warm my soul. (Note:These things are not necessarily exclusively southern, they just feel that way to me.) I want them to think about sweet tea in mason jars. I want them to think about the humidity and how dewy it makes everyone's skin look. I want them to think about freshly cut grass and fields that go for miles. I want them to think about farming and hard manual labor that builds character. I want them to think that cotton is beautiful when you see it in those fields. I want them to think about that moment just before dark when everything glows wet green and the fireflies come out. I want them to think about biscuits and cornbread. I want them to think about moonshine. I want them to think about famous writers like Faulkner and Twain. I want them to think about George Washington Carver and his work at Tuskegee. I want them to think about B.B. King and Otis Redding and Johnny Cash and Loretta Lynn. I want them to get "Jackson" and "Rollin on the River" Stuck in their head for days. I want them to think about front porches and their special role down here where everything's slower. I want them to think ROLL TIDE ROLL and maybe even Hoddy Toddy and perhaps even War Eagle, but never Go Purple and Gold or Go Vols. That just ain't right, y'all.
So, I have other thoughts from today, and I've written them down so maybe I'll be able to type them out tomorrow, but for now it's bedtime at institute. Nighty Night, y'all.
2 comments:
I've had plenty of discussions already about the southern-ness issues, so I'll just say that Miss Napa Valley will probably learn the longer she is here. Having to defend herself firstly by saying her best friend is black seems like a pretty good indicator that racism is probably alive and well in Cali.
Call me and tell me about your adventures when you have time. <3
Clearly Miss Napa Valley is like the many naive individuals we have in this country. People have no idea that racism is everywhere. Clearly she needs to given a history lesson of California. People were racist against the Chinese over a hundred years ago. Why do you think opiates are banned because they were such a relevant part of their culture? Chinese weren't able to wear traditional clothes as another way impinge on their culture. Hell up until recently during WWII the Japanese internment camps were racist as hell. Napa Valley for the most part is white and if they weren't so white exclusive they would have incorporated more blacks into their communities but thats not the case. She needs to get her head out of her ass and realize racism is found all over the world not just between whites and blacks in the South. Hell racism is just a type of discrimination such as ethnic or religious cleansing. Discrimination happens because people are afraid of what they don't know and can't understand. Ask older generations why they stay away from technology? Because most likely they don't know it and can't/refuse to understand it. In my experience, once southerners know you and understand you as a person they are loyal forever which can't usually be said about others in our country. And trust me I have lived in a deeply southern and religious town for a number of years.
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