by Jennifer Roberts, founder of Conversations In the Community

I am still reeling from Saturday’s devastating news of the racially motivated mass murder that was committed by 18-year-old, Payton Gendron who was armed with an assault-style rifle.  I am still outraged that 10 people were killed and three people’s lives were altered forever because of the actions of one ignorant, white supremacist who killed other human beings based on lies.  

Sadly, we’ve witnessed this gruesome scene play out too many times in the history of the United States and the horror show continues today.  Not only have we experienced the impact of racist lies in real life; we’ve seen it depicted in great detail on the big screen.

One of my favorite movies is John Singleton’s “Higher Learning.”  I was a high school senior when it was released in 1995.  The star-studded cast includes Lawrence Fishburne, Regina King, Omar Epps, Ice Cube, Busta Rhymes, Michael Rappaport, Jennifer Connelly and Tyra Banks. 

The movie takes place on the fictitious campus of Columbus University and follows the lives of freshman students trying to figure out who they are in this new setting and in life.  The film confronts major issues such as racism, socio-economics, and gender identity.  Singleton provides multiple examples for viewers to consider how our socialization influences us, how we choose to show up in the world and what we really think about other human beings.  The film also gives the viewer the opportunity to see the deadly effects of isolation, racial miseducation, and White supremacy.

Remy, the character played by Michael Rappaport finds himself enrolled in college with thousands of people but feeling alone and awkward.  He suffers from low self-esteem and doesn’t fit in with anyone, especially his Black roommate, Malik Williams, played by Omar Epps.  As Remy tries to navigate his new life, he is courted by a group of young neo-Nazis who take him under their wing.  Over the next few months, Remy’s racist band convinces him that Black people are trying to take the country away from White people and that they must stop it.  Remy buys into the racist rhetoric and ultimately participates in a mass shooting rampage throughout the university in the name of White power.  Deja, played by Tyra Banks is fatally shot by Remy, Malik is wounded and Remy commits suicide.

John Singleton had the genius of mind in 1995 to raise our collective consciousness about racism using entertainment.  Twenty-six years later, we are still having the same conversation.  When will we learn?

It’s being reported that Gendron was “inspired by a replacement conspiracy.”  According to a recent New York Times article,  replacement conspiracy is “the notion that Western elites -, sometimes manipulated by Jews, want to “replace” and disempower White Americans.”  Sadly, this lie that once was found in obscurity on the Internet has traveled to the mainstream and is being shared and believed by Americans and even perpetuated by some politicians and newscasters.  This disinformation is dangerous.

The hateful, racist beliefs of miseducated people who buy into the lie that White people are superior must be combatted by the truth.  The truth is that no particular group of people are superior, and the United States of America does not belong to one set of people. 

White superiority is an old lie that far too many people believed for hundreds of years and had the power to erect systems to perpetuate.  It is the lie that people of color are inferior that are imbedded in every American system.  These systems coupled with American citizens who refuse to denounce this lie that keep racism alive.

It is true that America is becoming browner.  Sadly, this reality scares many people because they’re having this conversation with themselves, “Where do I fit in to these changing demographics?  Where do I sit if I am not sitting in the seat of power?  I love being the majority.  I love making the rules even though they abuse other people.  Hmmm, what can I do to hold on to the power that I think I’m supposed to have even if I have to lie AGAIN to get it?   What weaklings can I convince that I am telling the truth?” 

Everyday we must choose who we are in life.  We must choose the character that we will have, how we will influence the world and how we will be influenced by the world.  Choosing how we will interact with racism does not escape these choices. 

We decide if we are racist, neutral, or anti-racist and we influence the choices of our children.  Who do you choose to be?  What are you teaching your children?

I choose to be an anti-racist and to do the work of being anti-racist.  I value the members of my community, my family and myself.  I value the legacy that I am leaving for future generations.  I choose to understand and process my personal prejudices so that I can make educated choices that are rooted in truth.  I choose to educate myself and be open to better understanding the perspectives and experiences of others.  I choose to understand the history of racism and oppose it wherever I see it.  I choose to educate my children to be anti-racist.

I am frustrated by the population of “go along to get along” people.  Please tell me, where you are going and what you are getting.  I am agitated by people who remain silent and stuck in neutral while racism runs rampant in every system in our country and in far too many homes.

When making remarks at the signing of the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Bill earlier this year, President Joe Biden said, “Hate never goes away.  It only hides under rocks.  Given just a little bit of oxygen, it comes roaring back out, screaming.  What stops it is all of us, not a few.  All of us have to stop it.”

What are you doing to stop hate?  We need more ant-racists, more people doing the hard work of eradicating racism and teaching their children to do the same.  We need people engaged in anti-racist teaching at home, in churches, in community centers and in schools.  There is no room for apathy, neutrality or disinterest.  Behaving as though racism will disappear if we refuse to discuss it is asinine.  This is truly a matter of life and death, truth and lies. 

Who do you choose to be in this season of your life, in this moment in American History?  What do your actions say about where you stand and what you are teaching your children?  Are you equipping them to build relationships with people who don’t look them or have the same culture?  Are you providing them opportunities to build relationships with people from other racial and cultural backgrounds?  Are you investing in their cultural competency?  Are you encouraging them to learn a foreign language?  Are you teaching them that they are superior to others? Are you teaching them authentic American History from multiple perspectives?   Are you teaching them to advocate for racial justice and prioritize community wellness? Are you unconsciously teaching them to be a racist?  Are you consciously teaching them to be an anti-racist?

(Editor’s Note: The preceding column reflects the views of the author only. For more information on our editorial policy, visit our Contact Us page.)