I apologize for the delay in releasing this column. I'm still working on the technology issues creating the problem.
Cameras are everywhere. From everyone’s cellphone to business security cameras, from people’s doorbells to traffic monitoring cameras, from police body cams to photojournalists out for a story, cameras abound. The brutality of one human being against another that we’ve watched repeatedly on television breaks my heart. Pictures of peaceful protest marches and community conversations give me hope.
Every time, I see someone lift a phone or camera, I am reminded of our 1995 annual. It was the year that cameras were first installed at the old high school building. Rumors ran rampant that there would be cameras everywhere, restrooms included.
The senior yearbook staff was charged with the task of developing a theme with a positive message around this newest addition at the high school - cameras. The staffers were baffled until one happened to notice and buy a picture-hidden-within-a-picture poster in a shop window. The staff, in searching for the hidden object, immediately came up with its theme - “A Deeper Look.”
With the aid of a company that created artwork of items like footballs hidden in abstract pictures, the staff easily developed a yearbook with a very positive theme spring boarding from a year-specific event at the school. A quarter of a century later, we as a society need to take “A Deeper Look.”
If an incident occurs almost any time, anywhere, someone inevitably pulls out his/her phone and either snaps a photo or records a video. Today, televised news broadcasts are full of such amateur shots and clips. Of course, the never ending news stories about mega-protests around the world have prompted my initial question. Will cameras make us better people?
We expect people in a civil society to do the right thing in the right way. We expect those who profess to be Christians to walk the second mile. My dad always said that there was a right way and a wrong way to handle every issue, even those that land us between a rock and a hard place. I have enough faith in humans to believe that most of us have consciences and most choose to walk the high road.
But for those who have lost their moral compass or never had one, I wonder if the plethora of cameras everywhere these days might make some think twice about their actions before, not after, they have reacted to the heat of the moment. Will they lead us Americans to examine the soul of this nation? I hope so.
A series of second events emerging from these protests, both the peaceful and violent ones, have also caught my attention. Journalists, as they have cover the story unfolding in the streets of America, even as they publicly display their credentials, evidently have been targeted by some police officers. Journalists, along with protesters, have been arrested, shot with rubber bullets, hit with batons and sprayed with teargas. The messenger should never be a target. That is the tactic of third world countries.
While some, who don the uniform of law enforcement do not uphold their oath, the journalists, the messengers, are also the ones who report when law enforcement officers not only respect both their badge and the citizens of the country, but also go beyond the call of duty. We, journalists, recording history in the making, are not the problem when rogues on either side of the law, not only break the law, but also the spirit of the law. Officers being ambushed is not the solution to racism. Nor is looting. Nor is arson. Two wrongs never make a right.
Yes, this country has much to address to insure that all Americans are treated equally. The systemic problems extends far beyond police and protesters. The time has come for the country as a whole to address the hard questions, to listen, to take “a deeper look” within ourselves and to take the time to come up with long lasting, equitable solutions.
Cameras have aided in bringing this centuries old problem to the forefront. Like the elephant in the room, we no longer can sweep it under the rug, ignore it, nor shoo it away. The cameras are rolling. Will we, as a civilized society, address these issues in the right way? Thanks to technology, the whole world is watching.
2020
Comments