Its A Smaller and Better World

A Great Man

Yesterday I stopped in to oversee a training session taking place here at work for some new technology we are implementing.  As I stood in the back of the room I had a chance to survey the group of people engaged in the training and I was struck by the cosmopolitan makeup of the group.  There were Eastern Europeans, Caribbean Islanders, Central and South American Latinos, African Americans, and an Irish immigrant.  The training was conducted by a young caucasian woman assisted by a second generation immigrant woman from India.  My employees were supervised by a Palestinian Arab.  Another young lady, from England, was monitoring the training for another technology company.  Everybody was getting along and working together without issue.  I reflected what a change this was from the very “white bread” society I grew up in.  I think it also points out one of the great strengths of American society.  Despite all the negative aspects of racism that Europeans and other detractors like to throw in our faces, America really is a true melting pot.  While it is sometimes ugly looking at it from the outside for the most part Americans pull together, especially when confronted by crisis, regardless of their heritage.  One of the things I am most proud of America is the dying out of racism.  Don’t get me wrong, it is certainly not dead, but more and more it is confined to the lunatic fringe and idiots of society.  When I was young it was very out front and acceptable to be a racist.  My generation benefited from the life of Martin Luther King who planted the seed of tolerance that may take a couple of generations to fully mature but has certainly taken root.  Working in the multi-cultural environment of the military pushed me into close contact with other races and ethnic groups which I found truly enlightening.  King had it right, judge a person by the content of their character, not the color of their skin.  I found that people are pretty much the same; there are jerks of every color.  One shouldn’t ascribe that behavior to anything other than the fact the person is a jerk.  At the same time I made some life long friends of some African-Americans that I would die for.  I can still remember one of my mother’s visits while I was serving in the military.  We hosted a party where a number of the attendees were African-American friends.  She was amazed and a little fascinated.  I see in my own kids the dying out of racism that was so prevalent in my parents’ world and I could not be happier.  We still have a long way to go but at least we’re moving in that direction.