Six Essential Steps to True Racial Justice
By Kevin Miller
We must not let George Floyd’s brutal killing be in vain. We must not allow the current momentum to pass without understanding how this time can be different. We have an opportunity for real change in justice and equity, but if we’re not careful, we could be repeating these protests a year from now, five years from now, and fifty years from now.
The protests are necessary and valuable. They build a sense of connection among millions around the world who are disgusted by these senseless actions. They serve notice of the pent-up frustration that will be leveraged toward true reform. They lead to the killers facing justice. They have already led to multiple cities implementing or revising laws to eliminate choke holds and other police tactics.
But will the protests lead to real change?
It is not enough to influence elected officials or even to replace current office holders. It is not enough to get laws passed, changed, or repealed. These things are important, but real change will only occur by returning power to the citizens where it belongs rather than a handful of political parties and influential organizations and businesses whose leaders do not answer to the citizens.
Despite massive numbers of protesters in cities, towns, and villages large and small across our country — as well as around the world — those in power are biding their time waiting for the momentum to wane and fade out. Many are already trying to leverage the movement to consolidate and build their power. Remember the massive movements to address gun violence after each mass shooting in recent years? They brought no significant change.
In his “I Have a Dream” speech, Dr. King said, “It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro’s legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality.”
Yet 56 sweltering summers have passed and the nation continues to overlook the demands being made on that day — we do not have equity in our society; we have not eliminated opportunity gaps; and unarmed black men are still being killed by white police officers. That is because we believe the change we seek is in our laws and rules, but those laws and rules are written and enacted by men and women.
Real change has not occurred because we citizens fight on the front lines and suffer the casualties of battles between ideologies and political parties while their leaders reap the rewards. We need to fight a different kind of war; we need to turn the soldiers on both sides into friends and allies. And we all need to stop being manipulated by those in power who want to retain and grow that power.
To achieve the change we seek, we must come together as we did at the birth of our nation. This cannot be a battle of opposing “sides” but must be a true consensus born out of mutual respect, trust, and commitment by citizens across our country. Unlike in 1776, we must be inclusive in ways that were not possible then, and we must act using the lessons from these past 244 years.
How do we gain consensus in a nation so drastically divided?
By recognizing that the real enemy is the divisiveness and those who fuel it, which are a small minority of our country and others outside our country who seek to weaken us. We must return our country to its citizens by attacking the center of gravity of that divisiveness. This cannot be done through laws and rules and decrees from those with power and influence. It must be done through the choice of our citizens to think for themselves and to abandon any group that fails to adhere to their values.
We can take back our country and we can do it without violence or threats of violence, but it will be hard because it will require every one of us to be vulnerable. We will need to constantly work past visceral emotions and personal biases. We will have to be willing to do what others are not willing to do. We will have to question our personal beliefs and principles and maybe admit being wrong about some.
But we will not be alone. To achieve real substantive cultural change will require all who want change to do these same hard things. We can overcome divisiveness by recognizing and leveraging the reality that we are far more alike than we are different. With that in mind, here are key steps to bring real change.
Acknowledge that no one person, political party, or group of people has THE answer. The answer — the hope for our nation to survive and thrive beyond the senseless death of black men and women at the hands of those who are supposed to protect and serve them — can only come from harnessing our collective knowledge, experience, passion, and love.
Recognize that the only way to sustain change is if enough citizens are committed to and ready to take action to sustain that change over the long haul. That means mobilizing Americans of every color, creed, and ideology in sufficient numbers to overcome the wealth, power, and influence of those who stand to benefit from stopping the change.
Begin this movement at the local level bridging differences based on things like cultures, religions, experiences, and appearances. Most importantly, bridging differences based on ideologies. This effort will require everyone to be vulnerable. It will require listening deeply to others without an agenda; that is, to listen for the speaker’s message and meaning and not some meaning or message that we hope to hear. That also means embracing and listening to those with polar opposite viewpoints.
Build community coalitions that reflect the ethnic, cultural, socioeconomic, and ideological diversity of that community. Build trust and commitment of the coalition through a demonstration of mutual vulnerability. The members must have the humility to share their stories, beliefs, and opinions and admit when they are wrong while having the ability to listen and to forgive.
Within coalitions, identify those things at the local level that contribute to inequity, opportunity gaps, misunderstandings, divisiveness, and other challenges. Work through a collaborative problem-solving process to develop possible solutions. Implement the solutions within your coalition’s level of influence and identify ways to implement those beyond your current level of influence.
Develop networks with coalitions in other communities. Share your work and especially your challenges and solutions. Develop collaborative actions with other coalitions that can influence challenges at higher levels. Assist other communities to establish coalitions with whom you can network.
This is not rocket science. Any group can figure out how to do these things, but that doesn’t mean it will be easy. Building a truly diverse coalition whose members trust each other will require courage and vulnerability.
You may note that many of the things noted here are things local governments should be doing. That is true, and it may be possible to leverage local citizen committees and groups. However, government statutes, policies, and procedures have been strongly influenced by the exact partisanship and ideological power brokering that we are now striving to overcome. Thus, an outside coalition may be necessary until the statutes, policies, and procedures can be sufficiently changed.
I hope this essay serves as a catalyst for real change. Like millions of others, I know we can and must do better. If you believe these ideas have merit and could help bring real change, share this with your networks. More importantly, take action with these ideas in mind. Don’t let George Floyd’s brutal killing be in vain.
Kevin Miller is the author of Know Power, Know Responsibility, a book on school reform away from a factory system to one that eliminates the achievement gap and allows every student to fulfill their potential. He has worked in education as a principal, teacher, and education consultant to improve education in rural, urban, and suburban schools.