WHERE'S THE HUMOR IN FERGUSON, MO?

This past year or so has been rife with incidents challenging the expectations that we live in a “civil society”.  Not the least of these were “what happened” and “why” in a small town, in the middle of the country – Ferguson, Mo. Yesterday the United States Justice Department announced the conclusions of their own investigation into the criminal justice system of that town. Among the findings was evidence of the pervasively bigoted culture of the local police department. Examples included a litany of off-colored, hateful comments and jokes about Blacks that are regularly passed around the department on public emails.

Last night I watched journalist Gwen Ifill, of PBS NewsHour, interviewing two obviously knowledgeable men about the implications of the JD’s findings. She was particularly interested in her guests’ opinions about what it would take to change the culture of the Law Enforcement community in Ferguson.

Full disclosure – Gwen and both of her guests are Black. So they must have experience of what it feels like to be the brunt of bigotry, coarse humor, and have foul language directed at them.

Both men said that they believed the culture was the problem and need to be addressed. Then Gwen raised the issue specifically about the implications of the ongoing emails – passing as jokes and humor in Police Department. But she couldn’t get either guest to answer her question about the role of those types of emails in the culture. You could see the frustration on her face.

Even though they were listening, neither man heard her question. They were so prepared to discuss their own erudite assessment of the situation they missed an important opportunity to address the power of language ----- as in WORDS ---- for inciting action and perpetuating a culture!

ARGH!!! ARGH!!!!  ARGH!!!!

Jokes are important storytelling vehicles. They are also passed along easily and collegially. “Did you hear the one about …” They’re part of the initiation language of the “club”.   The residual images left in everyone’s mind are specific, and memorable, and frequently trigger social responses…  whether a small chuckle, a belly laugh, even a companionable groan, or something more dramatic. And what makes them powerful is when the people engaging with them believe they are based on some truth – something everyone can relate to.  That belief can influence other decisions and actions over time.

Last night it appeared that these two Black experts had become “immune” to the power of WORDS in a civil (or less than civil) society.  It will be interesting to see if there is any more dialogue on this issue.