"An undercurrent of injustice"

We as Americans tend to believe that our nation is the center of the world in terms of opportunity. In many ways, that may be the case, but it's a little silly to believe that other places on the globe don't also have opportunities. The algorithm landed me on an article today about Americans living and working in Europe, because a lot of skills that are in demand here are in demand there as well. As some of these folks described their experiences, there was one quote that really stood out to me. A guy who moved to Norway to work as a software engineer said that one of the biggest differences there was that he rarely sensed "an undercurrent of injustice" the way that he did in the US.

That sure did hit for me. I'm pretty sure that I've felt that "undercurrent" my whole life. I also understand, in plain terms, that the only reason it's an undercurrent and not at the forefront of my existence is because I'm a white, hetero, male raised in Christian circles. For those not in my demographic, I'm sure the injustice is something that you deal with on a daily basis. I believe that this is a contradiction that Americans have been living in since the nation was founded, as the idea that slavery would be a thing in the face of declaring independence and freedom is, to put it mildly, mental gymnastics of the worst kind. Our nation may have been founded as a great experiment in democracy, but others have long since taken the concept and done a better job than us.

The undercurrent feels particularly vivid for me in the last decade and change. We seem too scared to admit that institutional bias is still racism and misogyny. Statistics, facts, describe how we have two different systems of justice and representation. There have been all of these laws in recent years that limit freedom, whether it be women's health, the right to vote or the right to learn. We've certainly come a long way, but it feels like we're regressing, and not even at the hands of a majority.

But this dude in Norway says that he doesn't sense any of that in his new home, and it puts his mind at ease. He's not always in a fight for what is right. I imagine that it also doesn't hurt that he doesn't have to worry about healthcare.

I have a difficult time reconciling the American climate. A very loud minority insists they need to "take back" "their" country, from what or whom I don't really know. They don't have exclusive rights to the nation. I think "they" are people of color, gay and trans folks, non-Christians, or literally anyone who advocates for people not getting a fair shake. The hard part is that it's a group of people who blame the "they" for all of their problems and grievances, that it's the people in my demographic who are disadvantaged. People have challenges, I get that, and I don't discount that feeling. But to suggest it's the people not like them that are the cause? No, the data doesn't bare that out, and if the facts don't work, what you're left with is hateful people.

People in my demographic have for years have often made moral equivalence arguments, that there are just two "sides" that are equally bad. This fundamentally mischaracterizes the problem. The recent backlash to diversity, equity and inclusion doesn't get the point of DEI in the first place. While the noisy right-leaning faction insists that fairness is levied only in equality, those advocating for everyone (and DEI itself) is an effort to make sure that fairness is actually achieved. It does not seek to create an advantage for the non-white, non-straight, non-Christian, non-male people. It seeks to make sure that the equality actually happens. The right-leaning faction doesn't want that, they want to be in charge and suppress folks not like them. These are not two sides of the same coin.

What do we do about it? I admit that I though when we elected a Black president and made same-sex marriage legal, we were on the right path. Somehow, these events only empowered and emboldened the hate and fear mongers, and we some how gave them power in government. I don't get it. There was a time when saying racist things in public was social, professional and political suicide. Now it isn't. The undercurrent is turning into 20-foot surface waves.