A Sliver of Hope
I got into a one of those Twitter spats this week with a fellow named Job Tate.
Tate is a former member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Mendon, the town around Killington ski area near Rutland. He is a conservative Republican, a heavy equipment operator and explosives expert for the U.S. Navy Seabees, no small thing. When I was a lobbyist, we would nod at each other in the Vermont Statehouse as men do, without ever being formally introduced.
Well … I was off on Twitter discussing Black Lives Matter and the debt we white people owe to … well everybody.
Tate evidently saw this discussion and fired off a few predictably incredulous tweets that you would expect from a conservative Republican.
It began with me asking whether merchants in Montpelier should put out their patriotic bunting per usual to celebrate July 4. I had been asked by a local retailer who was conflicted because of the current discussion over police killings of black people. Sounded like a sincere and honest question. So I put it on Twitter and Tate responded:
“Where does one even begin with a Tweet like this?’'
As my righteous anti-Trump, pro-BLM anger welled up inside, I spoiled for a fight. I would change the country in my direction by beating this guy on Twitter!
The discussion moved to whether the George Washington (slaveholder and father of the country - talk about conflict of interest!) portrait in the Vermont Statehouse should be removed. Interesting question, I thought.
As Mr. Tate and I were about descend into Twitter anarchy/flamethrowing, something happened. And he gets all the credit.
With regard to storeowners in Montpelier and July 4 he said:
“Well they’re welcome to do whatever they want to, obviously. America’s history is flawed, much like all human history. But that flag stands for constant striving, improvement. For freedom, justice, prosperity, equality. Our story - the flag’s story - is not done yet.’'
A ray of hope. A shot at agreement on Twitter. I could find in his words some sliver upon which to agree. I’m not a big flag guy and I tend to see its flaws before I see the greatness. I try to understand what a black Vietnam veteran must think when he sees the flag, or the family of George Floyd for that matter. I suspect Mr. Tate and I disagree about Colin Kaepernick.
But Tate’s admission that the country is “flawed,’’ sent me a message. Grow up and accept this sentiment, an admission by the dreaded conservative of imperfection, doubt. That’s what Congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis would say.
So I agreed with him and asked how we come together to pursue that constant striving he referenced.
Then this from Tate.
"But we all must remember that African-Americans descend from a people that were ripped from their homes and subjected to the cruelest inhumanity, then - even after their emancipation - were treated as subhuman by entire swaths of our country. This must never be excused.’’ I can’t even get conservatives in my own family to acknowledge this.
And lastly this from Tate.
“I appreciate your response. I feel that not assuming the worst in people is a good start - and acknowledging that while so very much progress needs to be made, we live in a country that our founders designed to foster that progress. Babies. Bathwater. We shall overcome.’'
So there you have it. A screaming liberal and conservative Navy guy finding the common thread, the possibility of a unified vision for the country. I suspect we disagree on every possible route to get to a more perfect union. But at least we stopped shouting at each other.
And that is the path forward.
BTW - after some thought, I think that the merchant wondering about the July 4 flag bunting might consider putting it up next to a Black Lives Matter sign.
