Today, we welcome a guest post from George Henderson, author of the recently published Race and the University: A Memoir. In this stirring book, Henderson recounts his formative years at the University of Oklahoma, during the late 1960s and early 1970s. He describes in graphic detail the obstacles that he and other African Americans faced within the university community, a place of “white privilege, black separatism, and campus-wide indifference to bigotry.”
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For nearly two years, news pundits have soundly criticized President Barack Obama for not initiating a national dialogue focusing on race and racial reconciliation. I was even more demanding. I wanted him to assume the role of race relations leader-in-chief, declare war on racial bigotry, and mount a public relations campaign to discredit and defeat bigots. But he opted to not heed those impassioned requests. Instead, he challenged each of us to be compassionate teachers during situations of racial conflict—euphemistically referred to as “teachable moments.” There are numerous hazards in assuming the role of conflict resolution teachers, especially if the would-be teacher has not gotten himself or herself together, so to speak.
