Dear America

Today I played a round of golf in the morning.  I returned home to watch a roundtable called Make it Matter.  It was the second in a set of three.  The conversation is needed and is not unique to Minnesota.  I hope this continues.  Please check it out.

I also sat outside and read Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen by Jose Antonio Vargas.  I've read a lot of articles about him but this memoir gave me insight that is important.  

Some of my highlights:

"'Consider yourself lucky." I didn't. I was just mystified.  But what was becoming clear-- and what I started internalizing... was that race was tangible, tortuous, black- or -white thing in a country where conservations about how you identify and who you represent largely fall into two extremes.  Nonblack, nonwhite people hat to figure out."

"I learned that race was as much about behavior-- perceived behavior, expected behavior-- so it was about physicality, 'Don't be too white.'"

"If America is a wobbly three-legged stool, with white-Americans and black Americans each taking a leg, the third leg divided between Latinos and Asians whose histories of struggle and oppression are often maligned and neglected, I'm not sure which leg Native Americans would stand on..."

"I associate white people with people who make you feel inferior, people who condescend to you, people who question why you are the way you are without acknowledging that you, too, are a human being with the same needs ad wants."

"I am not hiding from my government.  My government is hiding from me.  At least it's how it's felt in the past."

"I call citizenship of participation.  Citizenship is showing up.  Citizenship is using your voice while making sure you hear other people."  (This might be beginning of year bulletin board.)

I highlighted more, but this might entice you to read it.