Part XI - Thanksgiving Day - 50 Years Ago

I cannot recall the exact year, but it was in the late 60's or early 70's.   We were celebrating Thanksgiving Day dinner at Mom and Dad's house.  I don't recall exactly who all were there, but most certainly one of my uncles was there.  I recall the seating arrangement - Dad at the head of the dining room table, me to his right, and my uncle on his left.  Paula was sitting next to me.  Somehow the conversation moved into race.  Why or how I cannot recall.  But what happened after that was another example of how racism was "inbred" into my upbringing and culture.

Not recalling the specifics, but my uncle was spouting off all of the stereotypical nonsense about blacks.  I, being a freshly minted college graduate, had the opposite view.  Perhaps I was already teaching in an integrated school setting at the time.  In any event, I "took him on" and countered all of his prejudicial nonsense to the degree that all he had left was to refer to me as "sonny boy" and "you'll learn".  (As a side note,  I'm sure he would be one of those Trump supporters over the past four years - ignorant, afraid of change, racist, etc.)

For the first time, I got so angry that I got up and said "We're leaving!"   I softened it a bit to say we're going to go for a car ride - and so Paula and I left and were gone for about an hour or so - just to cool off.

When we returned, I believe my uncle and aunt were gone and my dad talked with me in the kitchen attempting to be a peacemaker among the family.

Looking back, I don't believe I was any sort of advocate for racial justice.  Perhaps I thought I knew better since I was more educated.  So, that incident on the surface looked to be an "awakening" for me by standing up for human rights and dignity.  In retrospect, it was neither.  It wasn't enough to counter my cultural and environmental upbringing.