RIDDING THE LITTLE SCREEN OF ROSEANNE BARR: A GLIMMER OF HOPE IN THE DISTANCE

A series of essays....

FRIENDSHIP IS COLORBLIND!
OUR DAUGHTER, CORINNE, AND HER BEST FRIEND,
MICHELLE, ON A TRIP TO EUROPE

....as seen through my eyes!

By: Jacqueline E. Hughes

Racism....the deep-seated, dark, murky thing that hides under the bed, resides in the hall closet, and keeps many people awake most of the night. Popular horror and thriller author, Stephen King, got it right each time he sent millions of his readers into tears of fear or battling night sweats after experiencing his novels. According to the Washington Post, around ten percent of Mr. King's tweets and Facebook posts are political and he holds nothing back when criticizing the current leader residing in the White House. His remarks are not pretty but, they are real and from the heart. 

HIS BOOKS CAN'T HOLD A CANDLE
TO THE REAL LIFE FEAR WE KNOW
EXISTS WITHIN THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION...

I have a feeling it isn’t always the shiny balloons, nasty looking clowns, or rabid animals that ignite our fears; often, it’s having to understand and deal with people who fail to see the beauty in others no matter what color their skin is while, at the same time, demeaning them as less than human. This is our nightmare; this should be one of our biggest concerns as we walk, breathe, work, and intermingle with others in 2018 and beyond!

The tone does start at the top.

If memory serves me well, our own parents set the tone for our deep-seated (after all, the heart is the seat of passion) beliefs that continue to live within us as thriving adults. Back in the day, we listened intently to anyone who fed and clothed us, along with various other authority figures who taught us our lessons in school, preached to us from the pulpit at Sunday morning mass, and, in theory, towered over us like giant, animated skyscrapers wielding their stone tablet lists of do’s and don’t’s. 

Please take a moment to ask yourself if you believe that the abhorrent comments, bad taste jokes, and life-threatening displays of hatred by so many people are having an insidious and damaging impact on all of us. If your answer is a profound...Yes!, a great follow-up question might be, what are we going to do about it?      

Let’s begin by admitting one thing to ourselves; the skyscraper holding the stone tablets today is more compact, unconsciously animated to the highest degree, and wields more power than even the most highly intelligent among us believed someone in his position ever could. His words and actions are inconsistent with the principle that all men and women are created equal and that each person born has a right to pursue everything and anything in this world and its societies as much as the next person. In essence, it means that no one has exclusive rights to these pursuits.

When hate is normalized at a high level and emboldened by a President who is race based himself...we have a major problem on our hands. Blinded by the incessant pain he has lived with all of his life and brought about by the dollars signs permanently embedded in his eyeballs, this poor excuse for a leader of the free world has been handed a 'one-sided' forum that he freely uses to spread his words of corruption and hate. 

He is an eager participant in the popular board game called ‘Risk’ and the fate of each person and every piece of land he scrambles to pull towards him with his grubby, little hands is hanging in the balance between life and death, rich or poor, love and hate, and right or wrong. Unfortunately, in reality, this is not a board game for us. It’s called survival. The treachery he creates, weaving harm in a manipulative manner, is far more dangerous than what seems evident to most of us on a regular basis. It’s as if we are being slowly consumed by an insidious disease and the cure is just beyond our reach.     
The racists, white supremacists, his minions or ‘base,’ follow him faithfully with the promise that they are free to hold absolutely nothing back to the tune of little or no consequences for their actions. The title of this popular song could be changed to ‘Who Let the Haters Out ?’ because this President has opened up the flood gates from Hell and the Roseannes, David Dukes, mini-Hitlers, greedy rich, and individuals who want to be able to, finally, belong somewhere in this society, have come pouring out of them. And, it’s not a pretty sight or a comfortable position to be in for the rest of the population.

Agreeing with the timely decision, made by the President of ABC, Channing Dungey, on Tuesday, to cancel the ‘Roseanne’ reboot sitcom starring Roseanne Barr, I am beginning to see a tiny sliver of hope way down at the end of this dark, claustrophobic tunnel we’ve been inhabiting for far too long. I am sad that ABC and Disney decided to take-on this project in the first place knowing who and what Roseanne stood for based upon her prior words and actions throughout the years. No matter how it is arrived at, profit is the name-of-the-game for all corporations, so, this decision comes as no surprise; she was highly marketable and the President residing in the White House today identifies with her racial slurs.

Rob Reiner, actor, producer, and writer, proposed an interesting ‘Catch 22’ challenge to Trump when he tweeted his thoughts after the demise of ‘Roseanne’ and wrote:

@robreiner
 “ABC has done the right thing. They’ve stood up against racism. It is our country’s original sin. But this is 2018 and it has no place in the hearts of decent people. Unfortunately our president has stoked these evil fires. If he doesn’t applaud ABC, he will continue to stoke evil.”

Mr. Reiner is right. If Trump tweets his support of Roseanne Barr, he will continue to stoke evil. But, I have a feeling we all know where this will go. Somehow, even this challenge will lead back to Trump himself; something he has or hasn’t done, or is about to do, or something someone else has or hasn’t done for him. Well, you know by now what I mean because it will always be about him no matter what the subject might be. What a sad, little man...

So, what are we going to do about it? In actuality, there are quite a few things we can do. And, staying silent and inactive as we wait for this ‘Crazy Train’ to, finally, leave the station is not one of them! 

For starters, we not only vote this coming mid-term election in November but, we encourage (embolden?) everyone else to do so. Talking about the categorical harm this administration is placing our country in will help bring this monstrous attack on us to light instead of keeping it in the shadows. Get involved! Speak with people who agree and disagree with you. Having both sides of a situation exposed can help everyone involved in so many ways. And, as the Brits say, “Keep Calm and Carry on” my friends.

In the meantime, the importance of finding our own, individual, purpose and means of joy in this lifetime should and must become a main priority. And, when we do, this solid platform will stabilize us, bring us closer to everyone around us, and open our eyes to the reality that we are all connected with one another...no matter the color of our skin or how we choose to love and honor a particular religion or atheistic belief.

CHILDREN DO NOT SEE IN
BLACK OR WHITE...

Feed your mind with fresh perspective. Make your voice be heard (rush to the polls this November). Discover the joy and passion in your life. Stop worrying and start living again. Remember not to allow the Boogie Man under your bed to take away your freedom or diminish the love you should have for all of the people you share this breathtaking world with. Life is too short to think, believe, or do otherwise. 

Copyright © 2018 by Jacqueline E. Hughes

All rights reserved