July 7, 2016

The System is Corrupt

Police violence is a tragic but logical element in the systemic racism that is foundational to the American political and social fabric, embedded in its DNA from the beginning: colonial slavery, revolutionary hypocrisy, constitutional inequality, legalized classism via segregation and separation with detriments to housing and education and medical care, a war on drugs selectively deployed, a misnamed “justice” system feeding a commercialized prison system, and a mania for weapons fueled by a fear of the other when the self is the danger. And we wonder why we have problems with a police force that is the enforcement arm of this same system.

 I offer no solution; only my grief. God forbid I should give up hope, but hope is ever more difficult to maintain.

Tobias Stanislas Haller BSG

Addendum:

The problem isn't a few bad apples in the barrel. The problem is the barrel.

 That is, the system supports and enables the bad behavior. We’ve seen this with the way the Roman Catholic Church mishandled pedophilia — moving guilty clergy instead of dismissing them; with the similar handling of police misconduct; with the polite homophobia that declares it is “just holding to the traditional doctrine / biblical view...”; with a wealth and oppression complex that keeps the greatest wealth among the fewest people. The corrupted system resists reform because reform threatens the system itself. 

 TSH

2 comments:

  1. MarkBrunsonJuly 08, 2016

    I offer no solution; only my grief. God forbid I should give up hope, but hope is ever more difficult to maintain.

    And that statement is exactly why I have no use for the oh-so-polite quality of most Episcopal/Anglican debate. Sometimes things matter more than being nice or reasonable. Frankly, the cold rationality demanded in such circles is hope - and soul - killing.

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  2. Tobias Stanislas Haller BSGJuly 08, 2016

    Exactly so, Mark. So often Episcopalians are bound by notions of politeness when truth-speaking is required. Naming the reality of the situation is vital to dismantling any systemic situation. That goes for racism and homophobia equally. Which is why mere handwringing and toungue-clucking are not enough.

    ReplyDelete

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