I attended
the training Race – Power of an Illusion
offered by the City of Saint Paul Human Resources department. This training consists of a three- part video
and discussion about each section. The first
is titled “The Differences Between Us,” and it shatters the idea of race having
a biological or scientific basis. In
this part of the video, a group of students sequence and compare their
DNA. They find their closest genetic
match is as likely to be someone from another race as their own. We learned there is no genetic basis that
divides us into racial groups. Any two
individuals within a racial group can be as different biologically as
anyone.
The second
part of the training is “The Story We Tell.”
In this part the concept of race as a modern idea is introduced. It’s only a few hundred years old and can be
linked to America’s need for labor, land and development. After finding an unending supply of labor, in
the form of African slaves, America defended slavery despite the strong belief
in freedom for all. The forced removal
of Native Americans from their own land was defended by President Jackson as
what happened to inferior people when faced with a superior race. There were scientists at the time who
believed Black people were created to be slaves, and were incapable of living
on an socially equitable level with white people.
The third
part, “The House We Live In,” looks at how institutions in the United States
benefit white people by offering opportunities to them that aren’t available to
all. At the beginning of the twentieth
century many immigrants started arriving from eastern and southern Europe. They had to prove they were white to take
advantage of government programs and policies
available only to whites. The
ability to buy a home in an area where property values increased wasn’t
available to some ethnic Europeans and Blacks.
The equity and wealth based on increasing home values was limited to
those whom the courts deemed white.
If you have
the opportunity to attend this training I would definitely recommend it. In addition to the informative, eye-opening
DVD, the discussion among city employees was also very good and made me aware
of the different life experiences we bring to our work every day. We own several copies of the DVD, and it can
also be viewed at https://stpaulmn.sharepoint.com/racialequity/Pages/Race-Power-of-an-Illusion-Video-Series.aspx
--Betty
Pearson, GLCL
