"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." - Martin Luther King Jr.
I stood in the middle of the busy streets of down town Memphis. Taking in the smells of BBQ from the various restaurants, and taking in all the excitement from the lights, street performers and the neat people you meet down there. I got to thinking, what was this place was like back in its prime? It was founded in 1819 and was named after the ancient capital of Egypt. It was a major trading center for cotton and lumber. The worlds largest in the early 20th century to be precise. It was also the center of the civil rights movement and where ultimately Mr. King met his demise. However, Memphis was and still is the home of the blues. Many great musicians such as B.B King, and Elvis Presley called this place home and I can just imagine the hotels, and nightlife back in the 50's. Now much of Memphis is a historical landmark, but the nightlife is still kicking. A lot of firsts happened in this great city. The first African-American on radio, first all female radio station, the first African-American neighborhood built by and for African-Americans and many more. However, Memphis, although a really neat place to visit and has some cool shows and awesome food, I imagine has lost some of its luster since then. Although racism was very prevalent then, it was refuge for blacks who escaped the rural south and now days its far from a refuge for any race. Memphis' crime rate is one of the highest in the nation. 1 in 58 people living in the Memphis area have either been a victim of the crime or in some way were effected by it and there are over 50,998 crimes reported annually. And before you get on your high horse it's not necessarily a race thing it's a pretty diverse city. There is more blacks (60%) then white (30%), but there are many other races as well. It's not a race thing. It never has been and this is the point I am getting at. It's a love thing. Racism, regardless of your ethnicity, starts in the home. Whether you're Black, White, Latino, or Asian you've experienced hate. You've seen discrimination or bullying. I wore dresses to school every day and was made of fun of all the time because of it and in high school was treated very poorly by boys because they thought it was easy access. So I know what hate looks like and guess what I am white…
I hate the term white privilege and I know I am not black so maybe I just don't understand, but growing up in Florida I never saw it. Florida is pretty diverse. In fact in the Orlando area there are more Hispanics then any other race, which is probably why growing up my two best friends were Puerto Rican. When I started applying for colleges and financial aide it became very apparent to me that because I was white I was not a first choice in colleges, because colleges want diversity. I would not receive financial aide because even though my parents didn't make that much they made too much for financial aide. However, my friend who lived in a nicer neighborhood then me and whose parents owned their home and who made worse grades then me was accepted into more schools and you guessed it received financial aide. I don't say this to be ugly. I am just saying there are privileges on both ends. There is hate every where you go regardless of the color of your skin or what is in your pants or what your sexual preference is. It is not a race thing. It is not a gender thing. It is not homosexual thing. HATE IS EVERYWHERE.
How do we change that though? For some reason in this great country I call home we have come to think that it can be changed by hate. Looting the streets, burning buildings, killing cops- these are your answers? Refer back to the quote in the beginning. "…Hate can not drive out hate…" Martin Luther King Jr. had a point there and I think we could all stand a lesson from him. Hate is ugly. It is not the answer. Jesus is the answer. I know this is cliché, but here me out. I recently watched this documentary on early education - I urge you to check it. (Link is at the bottom of page) It went on about our founding fathers and their dreams and visions for this country and unanimously, despite how some interpret the law, they wanted God in the schools. However, since we took Him out in the 60's test scores have dropped, academic achievement is at an all time low, and crime is at an all time high. Do you really think that is coincidence?
Whether you believe in God or not I think it safe to say you don't believe in hate. Hating hasn't worked in the past and its not going to work now. The only thing that can change the hate in this country is a change in the hearts of men and women. A president can't do that, and although teaching your children to love and respect will help, parents can't do it alone. It takes a society to teach love and if we show the world the love that Jesus showed them way back on Calvary not only will hate and crime stop, but I truly believe that we will raise a better generation then ones before us.
"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly". - John 10:10
History of Memphis, Tennessee. (n.d.). Retrieved November 15, 2016, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Memphis
