Straight Talk
>http://wcbstv.com/topstories/tea.party.naacp.2.1812710.html
“The first time I was faced with having to help a white farmer save his farm, he took a long time talking but he was trying to show me he was superior to me. I know what he was doing, but he had come to me for help. ’
Said by: Shirley Sherrod, USDA Rural Development Georgia State Director, delivered at the NAACP’s 20th Annual Freedom Fund Banquet.
This will be controversial. Reports are that Sherrod has submitted her resignation. Let me submit the counterpoint. Delaying one’s response is a way of establishing authority in an interaction. It is a fairly subtle but nonetheless aggressive way of trying to establish a superior position relative to the conversational partner. Let’s try a thought experiment in a different, objective setting: let’s say that Person A was relying on an authority figure- Person B and Person A acted in a contemptous manner, treating Person B as inferior. Do you think the authority figure Person B would go out of his way to pull strings on Person A’s behalf. Forget race and gender; basic rules of interaction would suggest that if you need something from someone- the manner in which you treat them will in fact impact what they decide to do for you. Try interrupting your boss every other sentence, and see if you receive a promotion.
Coming back to Sherrod’s example, in an increasingly diverse environment, old habits may nonetheless die hard. The kind of privelege that we receive in life - whether it is because we are white or that we are male or some other characteristic,we so often take it for granted….that is, until we are forced to reliniquish it. As minorities gain more positions of power, there is no racist equation in the applying the age-old maxim: earn respect by giving respect. Those that have been able to acquire respect through no contribution of their own may find it tough sledding in an increasingly meritocratic world where they must deal with others as equals. As they are denied services, and turned away from career opportunities because they are unwilling to deal with people on an equal basis — evolutionary principles suggest such people will likely dwindle. The problem may correct itself.
Unfortunately for Sherrod, she made her decision sound like it was based on race. It wasn’t. It was based on an age-old principle of mutual respect or lack thereof and its impact on the weaker party’s outcome.
