According to Soni, Nelson Johnson has supported efforts to replace "decades of lies and evasions" about historic injustices in Greensboro and, presumably, elsewhere with "a ground of truth" (173).
Do you think such efforts to examine and discuss past injustices is usually helpful or do you think there is a tendency to dwell too much on the negative and not enough on what a community (or a nation) should be proud of?
Answer this question after you've read part four, chapter three and all the preceding chapters.
I think there should be a balance of showing past injustices and focusing on what a nation can grow upon. I firmly believe that you can present a past injustice as a learning opportunity. History, no matter how dark it is, is a moment to learn from. With all that said, I definitely think there is a larger tendency to dwell on the negative than there is to focus on the positive. I can’t count the number of times I’ve heard people complain about the injustices of a nation, country, family, or friends, while disregarding any positives that could have come from it. The reason though is it’s so easy to dwell and focus on all that’s bad. Our emotions sadness, anger, jealousy are addictive and it’s hard to not want a taste. When you put in the work though. When you get those feelings of joy, forgiveness, and selflessness it’s so worth it. That’s why we need to put in the work to improve a country. If we all sat around dwelling on the injustices, without trying to think about how to fix them, how are we to ever get better?
ReplyDelete