Friday, December 12, 2014

One more post.

Now that I have the two really important topics out of the way.  I think I'm going to wrap things up, finally, with one more post.  This is not that post.

A Year and a Day, Thoughts on Privilege

So I hope this entry doesn't get too prickly, but it's something I still want to address. 

Many entries back I talked briefly about some of my reasons for leaving my potential job as a teacher in Philadelphia.  Specifically I mentioned my argument with The New Teacher Project personnel over an assignment about white, male privilege.

I was upset at them for their claim that all white males were privileged and all minorities and women were not.  More specifically, I was upset at the notion that I was supposed to feel guilty about this situation and about the idea that society treats me differently.  Society certainly does treat me differently, but I'll get to that in a bit.

So I've been thinking about this argument I had for quite a while now, and I decided to do a bit more research on the subject.

Long story short, I discovered that while maybe I was correct about it not being true in all cases it's far too true in the overwhelming majority of cases.  I also learned that the 'not-all-men' argument is used by both racists and misogynists to try to sweep the problem under the rug.  I don't want that, so I'm officially going on record as saying that both racial and sexual discrimination is a huge problem that deserves both time, effort, and attention (and lots of all three).

To bring it back to my own (perhaps mild) experiences, I think I have a pretty good example that sums up how I feel.  Call it a small metaphor for a greater problem:

Being white didn't make my trip physically easier.  It didn't make the miles any less long, the hills any less steep, or the wind and snow any less cold.  Being white sure as hell didn't peddle the bike for me.

However, every time I stopped or was stopped, whether it was to grab a bite in a cafe or whether it was to answer the questions of a curious law enforcement agent, I was treated, at minimum, with dignity.  I'd like to think that this was because the people who greeted me were just genuinely good people, and I don't want in any way to belittle the kindness I received.  The point I'm trying to make is that I didn't have a SINGLE negative encounter with any officer or with any patron or place of business.  From what I've read and what I've seen, this would never have happened if I had been a young black man traveling alone.

So I feel angry that other fellows, no worse than me, would be at a much greater personal risk on such a trip just because of a national attitude and a different skin color.  I feel angry that many women would feel equally threatened, not by the elements that they might choose to pit themselves against, but by the people they might meet.

And maybe I'm still missing something.  I still can't quite reach the feeling of guilt I've been told I should feel over all of this.  I still want to look at receiving basic human dignity as a right that should be given to all but has been unfairly denied to so many.  I keep hearing instead that even such a minimum of respect is a privilege that has been unfairly granted to only a few, myself included.  I'm having trouble bending my mind around the concept that dignity is a privilege, i.e. something that should be denied until earned, regardless of race or gender.  I am clinging desperately to the idea that dignity is a right that should be assumed and granted, regardless of race or gender.

I always thought anger was for when I see other people treating someone poorly and that guilt was for when I have treated someone poorly, myself.  Perhaps I'm wrong, or, even worse, perhaps I am part of the problem, myself, in some way I don't see yet.

Maybe someone can help clarify these things for me.  There has to still be an angle I'm not seeing the subject from.  So this is me trying to be all ears and trying to have an open mind. 

Peace, I had done.

A Year and a Day, Many Thanks

So this is more like a year and a week or a year and a fortnight, I guess, since the end of my trip but those just didn't have the same ring to them as far as a title goes.

I don't know if anyone will really bother reading this entry.  My trip is long done now, but I always did mean to write at least a few more follow up entries and it's been weighing on my mind as something unfinished.  So here we go.

Many Thanks:

First off, I need to offer some very specific thanks to the following people.  These are the people who either gave me a gracious donation of funds during my trip, a place to stay in their home (or boat), or in some cases both.  So, in no particular order I want to offer my most sincere appreciation to:

My good friend Josh Lang, currently of Pittsburgh and his wife Kristi.
My cousin Mike Sincevich and his wonderful fiance Joy Willard.
My cousin Joshua Beard, long live the emperor.
Kathryn Mueller, who met me once in a bike shop.
Dan Rodina, who never met me at all.
Those two fellows in Wyoming who let me crash in thier work RV even though it was probably against company policy.
Captain Jim Hall of the ship High Tithe.
Sheri, who runs The Pink House in Boise.
Cousin Pat Sincevich, Brandi Sincevich, and all of their fine children.
David Chadwick and Gina Pace of Seattle.
A certain Miss Whitney, whom I met in a cafe not far from the Idaho-Wyoming border.
And lastly, that fine gentleman who met me once in a men's room, told me about his time in the Korean War, donated me $10, and wished me the best.

All in all, total donations came to $440.00, which amounted to a month's worth of food and bike repair supplies for me while traveling.  At the time I was very strapped for resources and I used every penny of it.

In honor of all of your many acts of generosity, I have recently donated a total of $880.00 dollars to my favorite non-profit, The American Chestnut Foundation.  It seemed fitting to try to give a little back to the out-of-door.  I'd like to say that the second half of that amount was me meeting all of your contributions, but if I'm honest I'm going to have to look at it more along the lines of acknowledging all the free meals, free desserts, and free couches that were provided for me.

I have one or two more topics to write about, but this one is important enough, I feel, to warrant it's own special entry. 

So once again, thank you all very much.