Treat All Instances of Hatred and Bias Equally

Christine Flowers on Nov 22, 2021

We don’t even need to go that far back to see the hypocritical gymnastics the media does when discussing race. After Kyle Rittenhouse was justifiably acquitted of all charges in Wisconsin, the usual race baiting suspects came out with comments about how if it had been a Black boy who shot white guys, he’d be sentenced to life. They inject race where it’s irrelevant, but ignore it when it is actually relevant, as when Africa- American teenagers are brutalizing Asian students.

Time after time, if the aggressor is white and the victim is not, it automatically becomes a narrative about bigotry and white supremacy. The “Through the Looking Glass” moment came when Rittenhouse, who is white, shot three men, who were also white, and he’s still attacked as an example of white privilege. This is madness, and we are in societal quicksand.

Refusing to point out that race was very likely a factor in the attack by these Black students on Asian youth is racism by omission, namely, refusing to even consider the possibility that bias was a central part of the equation.

If we really want to have an honest discussion about race, we have to discuss all the messy, uncomfortable aspects about it.

We need to treat all instances of hatred and bias equally, because if we don’t, we are proving that only some lives matter.

Christine Flowers is an attorney and a columnist for the Delaware County Daily Times, and can be reached at cflowers1961@gmail.com.