European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 24, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 the stars and stripes Friday february 24, 1989 readers discuss views on racial tolerance i would like to thank an to for All the coverage on or. Martin Luther King s dream during the week of his birthday. I am 25 years old. I grew up in a medium Small All White town in Northwest Pennsylvania. There was per haps one whole minute devoted to or. King in my High school history class. I am glad my children Are growing up As part of a . Military Community and will not live 23 years of their lives before Ever meeting a person whose skin color is different than their own As i did. I believe my children will have a Richer childhood because they have social interaction with people of Many races religions and cultures. At first i was disheartened however at How much coverage the Kun flux klan and other White supremacists also got. But now i m glad i did t turn off my to. My 6-year-old daughter listened to what these people said formed her own opinion and made me very proud to say the least. You see her very Best Friend just happens to be Black. My daughter was appalled to find out that there were people in this world who hate people like her Best Friend and her Best Friend s family just because of their skin color. She told me the Guy on to was wrong about Blacks being dumb because her Best Friend can add numbers quicker than she can. She told me that when she grows up she s going to Stop those people on to from saying such hurtful things about her Best Friend because those people arc liars. And i was worried about exposing her to such garbage on the one hand i think the Kkt and other White supremacist groups should be treated As terrorists and not Given the publicity they like terrorists thrive on. On the other hand All they do is show How foolish and narrow minded they Are anyway and gain More ene Mies than recruits i would think. So How did i grow up spend 23 years isolated from the rest of the world and think like i do Here s a Little of my family history my grandparents Are italian immigrants. When my dad was growing up he and the other children of italian immigrants were taunted and discriminated against in their Small town. Their Olive coloured skin dark hair and eyes did t fit in with the Norm. If you were italian Back then in that Little town you lived on the West Side by the noisy rail Yard the other Side of the tracks because no one wanted an italian for a neighbor be cause property value supposedly went Down. When my Mother married a Man from the wrong Side of the tracks they moved away. A lot of families have stories like these. I m sure my father s family got off easy As far As racism is concerned but any kind of discrimination no matter who it is aimed at is intolerable. Prejudice starts in the Home. A lot of people will agree that it can also be prevented in the Home. I also think just As the anti drug and says not teaching your kids to say no to drugs is As Good As saying the responsibility for our children to grow up in a prejudice free world lies in the guidelines we give them. Prejudice hurts everyone. We have to work toward eradicating it. We need to immunize our children against this societal disease with a vaccine of the real truth plus love and tolerance for your fellow humans. As for you White supremacists you do not rep resent All White americans so please Stop saying you do. The More Public you become the More ene Mies you will make of your own Accord. You re not impressing very Many people on to but thanks for showing my family that there Are still people such As you out there. If you planted a seed of hate in my children which seems to be your goal it s a seed of hate directed at White supremacists. Congratulations name withheld Stuttgart West Germany february is Here. It s time again to participate in what has now become a ritual Observance honouring Black achievements. The routine is Well known Black Community leaders will Herald speeches of or. Martin Luther King or. Blacks and other interested people will attend prayer breakfasts and other Public events. It s a time to recall past injustices and preach the Virtues of peace and Harmony among the races. On the other hand some May be alienated by making them feel they Are forced to Deal with minority prob lems similar to feeling obliged to eat a disagree Able food in order not to offend the Host. If any of the above statements sound familiar one May understand Why some people say events such As Black history month Are no longer meaningful even hollow celebrations of defunct concepts. I have heard this argument Many times and recognize an underlying question what is the primary purpose of Black history month or any period which honors a specific ethnic group recall injustices demand equal rights and evoke guilt Are answers Given by a few. Based on personal experiences i determined my own answer education. Over the past 35 years i have been affected by or been witness to the extremes of racial prejudice. In my youth unkind words were shouted at me simply because i was a coloured spontaneous acts of violence against negroes common during my childhood Days in the South were justified on the ground of keeping them in their today As a Man i m aware of less overt acts which deny Minori ties residence in affluent communities or membership in elite social organizations. This is not to say Progress has t been made. Legally much has been done. Federal Laws now make it illegal to discriminate against people based on color religion or political and ideological views. The open anger and hatred that marked the 50s and the racial confrontations which characterized the 60s, in my opinion were not prevalent during the 70s and Early 80s. Indeed changes in the Law have created a racial climate which is tolerable at Best. Tolerance however is not acceptance. Law de mands equal treatment of Blacks and other Minori ties it does not require understanding or acceptance. I still hear Well intentioned but trite comments among All races such As that s the Best Black Leader or whatever in the in addition recent surveys indicate Many Minori ties still feel they must work harder in order to reap the same rewards As their White counterparts. Omit Ting racial connotations from superlatives and giving equal credit for equal Effort can cause toleration to give Way to acceptance. The latter can be Complete if prejudicial attitudes which continue to exist on All sides of the racial Divide Are changed. Education is effective birth control for ignorance the Mother of prejudice. As a High school student in Okinawa i formulated this concept after having fought with another american about derogatory names he called my okinawan Friend. The scrapes and bruises from the altercation soon healed but questions about Why it happened lasted much longer. I finally concluded that my fellow american who had recently moved to the Island knew Little about okinawan. I then set out to educate him about the Ryukyu an Island and its people and eventually we All became Good friends. I have applied the concept Many times in the years since and it has proven True. On a larger scale efforts to educate people about one another have resulted in contemporary ethnic groups enjoying Many freedoms and opportunities they were once denied. Nowadays no american can claim Legal deprivation of the right to attend school or eat in an establishment of one s choosing. Unfortunately reality shows that no country can legislate acceptance. Whereas what is legally right and wrong can be determined by lawmakers acceptance is an individual decision. That s Why racism has always been an equal Opportunity employer in listing minds across the ethnic spectrum. I have frequently heard Whites articulate the no Tion that civil rights activities produced equal rights policies which favor minorities. Now the newest americans vietnamese and cambodian refugees Are the object of such declarations from Blacks. It s Plau sible if minority issues override those concerning people As a whole that other americans japanese lithuanian or greek will make similar claims. Perhaps it s time for Blacks and other groups to recognize the limitation of Federal and other Laws. As recently ruled further limitation of equal Opportunity policies into racial quotas in some circumstances May Lead to True reverse discrimination. This is not to suggest that existing Laws concerning discrimination Are perfect or that America has made unreasonable attempts to Pla Cate the races. Legislated racial quotas not Only raise fairness issues but also Point out that the Fate of each group of people is inextricably linked and actions for one will inevitably affect the other. The percepti9n of the effect however depends on How Well a particular group makes its concerns under stood. Thus the onus of education is on the minorities. They must of course sol Cit and have the help of others in any Case the education process must involve two Steps first the group must educate its members Sec Ond the group and its members must educate others. Inherent in the first step is the Point that Blacks and other groups have responsibility for themselves. I con tend that Blacks can change stereotypes about their race by teaching their children among other things that time spent in the Library is As important As that spent on the playing Field. In addition renewed emphasis on family Church dignity and Pride can help Blacks break negative self fulfilling prophecies. Ignoring the initial step in the education process makes it unrealistic to expect an individual of any color to discern personal significance from the Magna Carta emancipation proclamation or the writings of confucius. And lacking knowledge about one s own culture a person is hardly credible when it comes to the second step. American minorities should not limit the process of educating others to their continent. Like Many other . Citizens the military experience has Al Lowed me to View human relations in several coun tries and i be made a couple of observations the United states exerts major influence on the world and ethnic conflict is not an american phenomenon. Examples Are found in Belgium with the flemish is. The balloons Lebanon with the moslem is. The christians sri Lanka with the singhalese is. The tamils and in Canada with English speaking is. French speaking populations. Therefore a Black or chinese american s struggle for Equality should reach across the Borders of Russia India and South Africa and anywhere else Man has not accepted his fellow Man As an equal partner in brotherhood. Although in Many countries some minorities have achieved higher socioeconomic status the need for bet Ter human relations is still acute. There must be Educa Tion. Subtle forms of racism and bigotry experienced by the jews Irish italians puerto Picans japanese swedes and other ethnic minorities cannot be solely addressed through Law. For some a special Day week or month honouring their heritage provides the Means by which the education process can take place. I look Forward to the Day when people Are truly knowledgeable about each other and periods with ethnic unique themes Are no longer necessary. Maybe this too was a part of or. King s dream. Maj. . Garrison shape Belgium appearance of uniform discussed might sir of a pm. K/�\.mir1 to i�w�nli4i/-� %. V.4 i in would really appreciate professional military feed beyond the regulation May that commander go in Tnp a Panno Arm ant a or a of Tho a a. It ,. ,.name and location withheld Back on the wearing and appearance of the army uni form to be More specific the Battle dress uniform Blu and the army combat boots. First the Wash and Wear Blu this uniform is de signed to be washed and then worn. According to the regulations no starch will be used. That s Fine. But then what Are we required to just simply shake them out Iron them possibly take them to a dry cleaners to pro Duce creases that will Cut paper perhaps press them so stiff that if we fall we cannot get Back up without help my second inquiry concerns the combat Boot. The regu lation seems to be satisfied if the Boot is Black. What comes into question is the Shine. What is required a spit Shine Brush Shine paint or Wax what bothers me the most i there editor s note sgt. 1st class Bradley t. Neff leadership action no leadership Branch office of the Deputy chief of staff personnel he Usa eur replies the army is a uniformed service where discipline is judged in part by the manner in which the individual wears the uniform As prescribed. Therefore a neat and Well groomed appearance by soldiers is fundamental to the army and contributes to building the Pride and Esprit essential to an effective military Force. It is the responsibility of commanders and especially cos to ensure that military personnel maintain a High Standard of dress and appearance. Uniforms will be prop o be no. -. � a . A a Tonkin my m. Ilia Uinci Niumai Prus taxi a military image Inai leaves discretion of the company commander How far above and doubt that they live by a common military Standard and responsible to military order and discipline. Although some uniform items Are made of Wash and Wear materials such As the Blu or treated with a Perma nent press finish such As the a 415 shirt some pressing May be required to maintain a neat military appearance. The Blu May be pressed but will not be starched. A 670 1, Para 3-5, states the commander May require these uni forms to be pressed for those special occasions when appearance should be especially Sharp such As parades re views inspections or other ceremonial occasions. Pressing May be done with an Iron and does not require the Soldier to have them dry cleaned or professionally laundered. In regard to your second question concerning the combat Boot the Boot must first meet the guidelines set Forth in a 670-1, Para 27-4. The regulation states that the Boot will be
