As I reflect on the current situation of racial concern at Smith, I find myself more concerned about the manner in which the event has unfolded in the public space via Twitter feeds, Facebook, newsprint and demonstrations. What is happening here is sadly not unique to Smith at all. Over and over, we see some section of the public quickly inflamed by limited knowledge of an event that might reflect some racial offense or injustice. The sequence that occurs tends to follow a pattern: First something unpleasant or seemingly prejudicial occurs. That event is then “announced ” on Twitter or Facebook. Then it is amplified by escalation of comments in public social media. Unfortunately, news media fail in accurate reporting of the event and end up providing additional support to the same incomplete story. Fairly rapidly, a rock-solid conclusion is made that the event is clearly yet another reflection of racism or other abuse in our society. This is followed by an explosion of righteous indignation that such a heinous event should ever occur. Righteous indignation involves a personal belief in one’s purity of thought and analysis. This then fuels the demonstrations and justification of other unfortunate behaviors at times. Unfortunately, I have never seen hot righteous indignation promote useful thoughtful exchange of ideas and observations between people. In the end, we are all left with a messy unfortunate situation in which conclusions and actions are based on incomplete information. People are hurt on all sides, and individuals are often demonized. Furthermore, useful and constructive responses, including any appropriate corrective actions, are harder to easily achieve.
Paul Redstone
Northampton