My Home State

Maine is not unlike the deep South, or D.C., or the heart of America where there are rich folk, there are college professors and intellectuals, but where for the most part people tend to struggle. It's poorer and much more conservative than it's Northeast neighbors.

There are hard workers who tend to stay exactly where they were when they left high school. And because of the lack of travel, lack of exposure to different voices, lack of receiving push back and challenged in college, tend to be very Mainer in thought. If you're looking for a state that represents the honest working White poor, this is it.

It's quite interesting, the perspective of this population, who, for the most part, believe that don't have any leg up on people of color because of their own condition. It's a population who can be desensitized or sometimes unfavorable to racial issues.

Especially now, when Black boys are still getting blatantly murdered, and being put on trial over-and-over again for their own murders, having their characters questioned when they are no longer here to defend themselves; that speaks to the fabric of this country and the narrative and mindset of this country. That happens because people don't open their hearts before they judge.

Portland has Northeast politics but also a hint of Southern conservatism because of the growing population of immigrants and people of color... and it's always in the air... it's kind of hurtful.

The cure is travel. The cure is to expand beyond all White circles. The cure is money. The cure is to get to know individuals of color for who they are and to examine self biases. But the stumbling block is fear and apprehension. And going against what your parents and grandparents may have taught.

The White perspective is worth examining... looking into... and really grasping. How do you get a population to understand that biases and racism exists when they, too, feel like they are not benefiting from the fruits of their labor and from the resources of this country?

How do you get a middle or lower/middle class Mainah... to see that it really is not as easy for others? How do you widen perspective now that it is growing more diverse? Reaching the defensive only works when we work to examine why those defenses are up.

People aren't innately bad. Maine is just small in more than one way.
It also helps to not be so radical in approach. When people come to the table, they won't be transformed or open when consistently lectured at about their "ignorance." Every body is ignorant. But coming to the table, and helping people grow, is crucial.

Yes allies are privileged, yes it's not about comforting the privileged/oppressors, but a lot of the literature now seems to sabotage people coming to the table in the first place. It's a balance to consider.

"There aint no gun they make that can kill my soul" - J. Cole