Dangerous Tactics

Thomas Friedman has written an article about the potential results when hateful words cross red lines. We've had some presidential candidates try to build their own hierarchies through comments about people who are not in the dominant race or religion.

Friedman is suggesting we see the movie, "Rabin: The Last Day," so that we will pay attention, and be careful not to ignore or rationalize the divisive, bigoted campaigns of Trump and Carson. The movie chronicles the incitement campaign leading to the assassination of a Prime Minister.

http://amestrib.com/opinion/thomas-friedman-politicians-seeing-evil-hearing-evil-speaking-evil

Gun Control Results

A recent study shows that states with the most gun control laws have the fewest gun-related deaths. The study uses data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

As typical of groups that demand a position on top, such as the NRA, we can predict that the facts will be explained away so that they can maintain their control and keep whatever policies benefit themselves.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/50-state-study-more-gun-laws-fewer-deaths/

Voices from Below

It's an enlightening experience to listen to people in lower groups – that is, lower than our own group. If we acknowledge that we may feel uncomfortable, and then relax and just be comfortable with being uncomfortable, we can smile as we hear new perspectives. We may relate to some of the observations and feelings because we have seen them when the players are changed and we are in a lower group.

For those of us who haven't used a wheelchair:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24Ehk15etNU&feature=youtu.be

For those of us who aren't black. The question, "Why is it that white crime is seen as an isolated incident but black crime is a representation of my entire community?" describes a typical scenario across many hierarchies. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuVMJmC0V98

Oregon Shakespeare Festival - Breaking Down Hierarchies in Theater

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is being featured in a September 6, 2015 print article in the New York Times describing its efforts to include diversity in all phases of its productions.

Bill Rauch, the festival’s artistic director since 2007, is the head of the organization committed on every level — whether it’s in commissioning plays, hiring actors, directors and other artistic staff, or reaching out to new audiences — to broadening its cultural reach and its diversity.

As he noted in a phone interview: “The theater in general lags behind in representing the America of today and the future. So we in leadership positions need to do everything we can to reflect the world we live in.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/06/theater/the-oregon-shakespeare-festival-focuses-on-diversity.html