WOMEN & MINORITIES IN AMERICA

 Dear George,

I realize Mr. Washington that in your-day except for the odd queen here and there in Europe and Africa or the Middle East--planet Earth was essentially a man's world. And, remaining securely in-charge of everything was the goal regardless of the fact that the global birthrate has always been split 51% female to 49% male...

Okay, so my high school biology was a few decades ago. However, besides my senior year segment on the human immune system [see 5/12/21 Blog: DIS-MIS-INFORMATION IN AMERICA],  I also noted 'that' particular biological percentage because I was curious about nature's math.

So, t-h-e-n 'fellow-travelers' imagine my surprise when upon moving from Alberta to Colorado [1990] I kept hearing journalists on news networks and corporate professionals and politicians speak ever so blithely using the expression "women and minorities"...  I was puzzled. Why were women included with cultural minorities? Women are neither a separate culture nor a minority. Since the definition of minorities is: ...the smaller number or part, especially a number that is less than half the whole number...Using that shouldn't it be; "men and minorities"? 

Naturally I was being facetious because men aren't a culture either. Females and males are a gender. [At least that used to be the 'science'.]

Anyway, statistics [and polls] seem to be the mainstay of journalists, corporations and politicians - but the 'circumstances' by which statistical and probability information is gathered has a huge effect on the outcome. I took only one [required] statistics course with my geology major, and it's not rocket-science, but I learned enough to realize it takes rocket-science to plough through the formulas some analysts use. When people in public office or the news media report for example that 68% of parents are 'for' the wearing of masks in school classrooms--they also need to tell us how many parents were contacted, and in which school district[s] in which county in which state...But the mean, median, mode and range are not reported on the 6PM news. Because those standard details are missing, the impression left with us is that 68% of parents [across the country] are in favor of masks in school classrooms--which is as you can see, 'not' accurate. 

Technically no one has lied, but is only 'some' information still a lie? Maybe it's not a lie, but this repetitive pattern maintains an artificial social division. Divide and conquer is a longstanding battle strategy, but it's also used domestically. 

Ideally, the simpler the premise for gathering and using data offers more accurate results, such as: what was the 2020 U.S. Census total?  From the basic census results of 331,449,281 [million] U.S. citizens, a horde of experts from dozens of disciplines will dissect this larger number into more finite graphs and records such as region - age - education - occupation - ethnic origins.

For the purpose of this Blog a simple breakdown of the 2020 U.S. Census was actually a surprise. Once again, when politicians and the national media only provide part of the information the masses need to get a balanced perspective - it creates mass ignorance. Because so much emphasis has focused toward African-American issues--I expected Americans of African descent would represent the second largest population group after Americans of European ancestry. But, they weren't, and they weren't even third in population size. The second highest group by population was Hispanic, the third group was citizens of Asian descent. Those of African descent were fourth, with Jewish and Middle Eastern fifth and our Native Americans sixth.  

We forget that many ethnic origins enriching the American salad of people come from 50 other countries. Everyone here is from somewhere else, but while we've all been enhanced by the variety of foods, art, music and inventions due to immigration, our ancestry ought to be a bygone. We absolutely should be aware of, and thankful for the efforts of ancestors who came before us - but not 'cling' so strongly to that past that we waste our present. Sadly, we continue to do just that and here's how...

Twenty years ago, at the turn of the 21st Century only 7% of the U.S. population listed their ancestry as American on the 2000 Census. [I couldn't find an updated number for 2010 or 2020.] But why isn't anyone 'born-here' or anyone who went to the effort of obtaining legal citizenship think of themselves as American? It's actually easier to govern citizenry who are homogenized, but only if 'harmony' is the goal of those in leadership. If not, then blending isn't possible - ever.  

Even after five generations in many families too many citizens of the United States remain divided by the sustained use of labels like Asian-American, Hispanic-American, Muslim-American, Jewish-American, African-American, Native-American, but not European-American. For some odd reason anyone from Europe is just referred to as whites...As someone of [mostly] European descent if I was continually reminded, via social programs or the media or politicians--to think of myself as say Norwegian-American, then I'd keep my connection to the homeland of my immigrant grandmother uppermost and unsettled. **Each week Professor, Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. who hosts and produces the PBS program Finding Your Roots, enlightens people about their ancestry. But his production includes 'Roots' in the title for a reason - because it's where our DNA begins, not ultimately where it is today.   

Control and influence can be an intoxicating addiction. And, historically for the human species it's actually been mind-altering to the point that for thousands of years males in every culture assumed complete authority. And, bluntly looking at human history there's evidence that males made quite a mess from century to century and continent to continent and should have had more female input.  Over the span of some 400 years Britain spread itself all around the world--using the same tactics everywhere. However, the British Commonwealth began to lose its grip 'because' they used the same domineering tactics everywhere. 

The female of our species remained [relatively] patient until toward the end of the 1700s. By then more and more girls were learning to read and to write--then ask questions. Sadly, just questioning wasn't enough and never seems to be enough to motivate those in leadership who find change annoying and inconvenient--for them...

 As for our growing populations of minorities - money - influenced holdover, stuborn thinking. Slavery was abolished in England, France and most of Europe [including Portugal that started global slave trade] 20 to 40 years prior to the U.S. Civil War. And maligning various cultures wasn't limited to well, hardly anyone. [One wonders without the meddling of royalty, parliament or congress would the vast majority of people seek to be more supportive of each other?]  My great grandfather was born in Ireland when the ruling British were smearing the character of all Irish in general. To escape and reach America, his ship's passage was paid for him, then he worked for a farmer as an indentured servant for two years as reimbursement for his sponsor. The hours were long with no days off and the experience was so horrific he left as soon as he could to seek opportunity in the nearest city. However, he faced further discrimination with sign after sign that read; "Irish Need Not Apply" posted in every store front, warehouse and dock. The only people who welcomed him and gave him work were immigrants from China who ran laundries, market gardens and labored on the railroads.   

Oddly, one would expect that since the United States was a 'new' country social innovation would have happened here sooner and faster...But for women and minorities it's been quite the opposite, even well into the later part of the 20th Century. As for a woman's right to vote that too was almost two decades behind most countries in Europe including Russia, one of the first in 1906. Sooo, two decades into the 21st Century the reason we have organizations like; The League of Women Voters, Affirmative Action, NAACP [National Association for the Advancement of Colored People], the ERA [Equal Rights Amendment] and other programs is the same reason we still hear distinctions like, "women and minorities". Until the mid 1980s married women, couldn't have loans or credit cards in their name, single women needed a cosigner, birth control/abortion choices or maternity leave and daycare was standard in every progressive country except the U.S. 

No one should have 'more' rights than anyone else - no one, no group - but not less either. Actually, not anywhere on this planet, but especially 'here' because we absolutely do know better. 

How does this cycle stop? It stops when We-The-People no longer vote for political-relics. It stops when we vote for people who have the same ethics we expected from our grandparents. It stops when people in public office lose blank-check authority with no accountability or repercussions. [Question: what happens if we eliminate those pointless little boxes we're expected to check for male or female or white-black-hispanic-asian-other from most forms?]

Publicly supported leadership [by either taxes, dues, tickets or purchases] for: school boards, sports organizations, corporations, entertainment, print/network news, unions, political parties--means assuming and accepting responsibility.... 

All authority elected or appointed is temporary and borrowed from each voter and consumer collectively. Governance also means serving everyone even those who did not vote for you or who may not spend a lot of money at your business. And, to make arbitrary decisions that marginalize any group, culture, religion or profession for financial or political advantage creates us-versus-them labels that continue to resurface. 

Here and now, there are no "women and minorities" because in America there are no minorities. In America there are only Americans as our passport designates...

Sherrie Todd-Beshore is an award-winning mystery, suspense novelist and former journalist.

Patchwork Publishing, LLC