A number of years ago, I had returned on a flight from Portland, Or to Chicago, Il . I was living in Waukegan, Il and working in Chicago. I was returning from visiting my family in Pacific Northwest. When the plane landed, I went and got my luggage and then my wife and I proceeded to long-term parking at O'Hare Airport to pick up our car.
We got into the car and were preparing to leave and that's when we noticed that no cars were moving at all. What was the reason for the stall in traffic ? My wife and I heard several drivers getting impatient, several car horns honking, several people yelling. Finally, it became clear that the exit booth for the parking lot was malfunctioning. The gate guard would not raise up and allow vehicles to leave. The attendant for the exit booth look very frustrated while dealing with all of the irate drivers who wanted to leave but who were prevented from departing because of this technical problem. A half an hour later, the gate problem at the exit booth was resolved and vehicles were able to depart.
Sometimes, you can feel like you are being stranded in a parking lot without the ability to leave. Currently , there is a lot of turmoil in our country surrounding the treatment of citizens, particularly people of color, by police. There is the continuing trauma of terror due to the endless events of violence that we have witnessed in Paris, Brussels, Orlando and now in Nice. Is there an orderly way to leave the parking lot or are we stuck to wait until the gate guard is fixed that will allow traffic to again move freely?
Feeling stuck, either in your personal life or as a country, can be demoralizing. Your aspirations can feel thwarted, your hopes and dreams can be derailed. How do you begin to break free and not remain immobilized?
Cornell West of Princeton University has recently observed
"I have deep empathy for brothers and sisters who are shot in the police force. I also have profound empathy for people of color who are shot by the police. I have always believed deliberate killing to be a crime against humanity." Obama has failed victims of racism and police brutality, The Guardian -- 1 day ago
Like drivers in cars who find themselves frustrated being stuck in a parking lot, we have voices that are clashing in frustration and anguish regarding violence being done to people of color and violence being done to police. The common theme, of course, is the continuing problem of violence in our society.
There is an on-going need for civil constructive discourse in our country. We need to be able to talk about the reality for security against terror while being committed to the support of civil liberties. We need to demand that law enforcement abandon the hideous practice of racial profiling and to constructively work on skills regarding conflict resolution, without resorting to the immediate use of firearms.
I remember that I was happy and relieved that day when the gate guard at the exit booth at O'Hare Airport was fixed and was again operational. I didn't like feeling stranded and trapped in my vehicle and not be able to move.
The good news is that we, as a people, do not have to feel trapped and stranded either. There are conversations we can have with one another and actions that we can take that can help open the gates and allow the path " to be made straight."
May it be so.