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Culture Wars Heat Up

Donald King

Posted: 07.30.2009 / 10:58 PM PDT

Much of the country may have had a cooler and drier summer than usual, but we cannot say the same about our politics.    I’m a bit of a news junkie, so let me review some of the events dominating the headlines to explain what I mean.

In May, the President  announced his nomination of Judge Sonya Sotomayor to fill David Souter’s position on the Supreme Court.   I know of no serious court watcher who sincerely believes she will upset the delicate balance on the high court, but the proposed addition of an outspoken Latina woman from the Federal Appeals Court of N.Y. led to a predictable conservative backlash that was overblown and largely unnecessary.   Her critics poured over her record and ranted about her decisions and ad hoc statements to the press, with no substantive results.

Eventually, the Senate Judiciary Committee held their hearings and there was a hardly noticeable glimpse of the “culture wars” the Administration hoped to avoid, when a female observer with white hair yelled about overturning Roe v. Wade, before slipping out the doorway and was discretely arrested for attempting to disrupt the hearings.   That woman was Norma McCorvey, the real “Jane Roe” who in the 1970s petitioned the high court for the right to an abortion.

At the end of May, breaking news shifted to a quiet prairie town in the Midwest when violence erupted at a Sunday morning worship service that saw the assassination of Dr. George Tiller, well-known for operating an abortion clinic in Wichita, Kansas.    He was approached in the back of the sanctuary and shot at point-blank range by an anti-abortionist who frequently posted vicious statements on his own and other anti-abortion web sites, had been previously arrested for possession of bomb-making materials, and was reputedly a member of the anti-government Montana Freemen.

Roeder was not just a pro-life activist who engaged in legitimate political tactics to influence government policy, but a militant who confided to acquaintances that stopping abortions was “justifiable homicide.”   This act of violence was a graphic reminder that America’s “culture wars” are still alive, despite promises from opposing sides to work toward greater consensus to reduce abortions.

Less than two weeks later, another act of brutal violence occurred at Washington’s Holocaust Memorial Museum.  While many visitors were touring the facility to learn about the heinous actions of the Third Reich, an 88 year-old WW II veteran, entered the museum with a rifle ( untraceable because it was made prior to 1928) and began firing, fatally killing a black security guard at the doorway.

Other security guards quickly returned fire and dropped the assailant, James von Brunn.  Law enforcement soon identified the shooter as a dedicated white supremacist whose prolific Internet postings denied the holocaust and spewed hate against Jews and African Americans.  Previously arrested in 1981, von Brunn spent the rest of the decade in prison for attempting to take members of the Federal Reserve Board hostage.

Since that time he was involved with prominent neo-Nazis, while employed at a bookstore that distributed materials denying the existence of the Holocaust.  In July he was indicted in federal court for first-degree murder and several related hate crimes.   This event by another “lone gunman” is further evidence of the extent of violence and hatred simmering beneath the surface among extremists on the political fringe since the election of a minority President committed to progressive political changes.   As the Secret Service has reported, Obama has been subject to more threats than any U.S. President.

Finally, in Cambridge, MA last week, a prominent African- American scholar from Harvard University was apprehended by police after entering his own home through the front door, which had apparently become jammed while he was away at a conference.   Police officers deny race played any part in their response which involved handcuffing and arresting Prof. Gates after he produced identification and explained his actions.

While countless other issues–both domestic and foreign– have been the subject of ongoing public debate, including the demand for health care reform sought by a vast majority of Americans, I chose these examples to highlight the resurgence of what have been previously referred to as “culture wars”.    Now, they threaten to derail one of the most serious political agendas that have faced our country compel a response from concerned citizens everywhere.

This daunting challenge cannot be accomplished if we allow ourselves to be politically polarized, sharply divided by racial and religious differences, and tainted by an attitude that tolerates the use of incivility, bigotry, and hatred to address our differences.

This is as much a threat here in Tractor County as  it is elsewhere, the only difference being the specific issues and groups that serve as a catalyst for creating intolerance, disrespect, fear and hostility.   I witness it here in attitudes and behavior directed toward rising number of Mexican Americans seeking a place to live and raise their children, and toward gays seeking legal recognition of their own choice of family lifestyle.   The reactions and negativity is surely not universal, as most Americans are compassionate, supportive of their neighbors and eager to embrace those whose background differs from their own.    But as we have seen this summer, an increasing diversity of values, beliefs, and cultural practices can create fear, animosity and even violence anywhere.

What bothers me most is that when we see, hear or learn about these events, we are often reluctant to condemn the behavior and to speak out in favor of those seeking to exercise the same rights and privileges that every human being deserves as a member of our community.     It is not enough to look the other way, to rationalize the actions of others, or to remain silent while those in power misuse their authority.    It is time for all good citizens to be outraged by disrespect, discrimination, sacrilege,  and a politics of division and exclusivity.   Culture wars only bring out the worst in society and threaten democracy.    Despite any differences, it is our responsibility to respect our leaders, treat our neighbors as we would have them treat us and demonstrate civility toward those with whom we disagree.