I was dismayed recently when I learned that someone spray painted the logo and contact information of a white supremacist group on several downtown locations — First Presbyterian Church, the Cummins Corporate Office Building, and Friendship Alley. First Presbyterian and Cummins both speak out about racial injustice, favor diversity, and encourage respect for everyone. Friendship Alley celebrates Columbus’ relationship with our sister city, Miyoshi, Japan.
I was heartened when shortly after the graffiti appeared, I saw multiple signs along State Road 46 saying “Hate has no home here.” We are all different and expressing hate doesn’t inspire anyone to change to be viewed as more acceptable to those expressing the hate.
I have friends, family members, and students of a variety of ethnicities, gender identities, religious beliefs, sexual orientations, and political views. Their diverse perspectives make my life richer and give me a better understanding of the world. I don’t always agree with all of their opinions, but I don’t want to silence their opinions either.
My view is not necessarily the best for everyone and is certainly not the only way to approach life. While the signs I saw along 46 cheered me, I’ve wondered what I could do to make things better for those who are the target of hate. I don’t make laws or company policies or have large amounts of influence. Then I remembered a story about my grandmother
In my grandma’s neighborhood there was a Japanese family that farmed and sold their vegetables. The summer after the attack on Pearl Harbor, this Japanese woman came down the street pushing her vegetable wagon. A bell on the wagon rang to let people know the vegetables were there. The neighborhood women had bought from her for several years, but this day when they heard the bell ringing, women ran from their houses, called their children in from playing, and closed their doors.
My mother and her sisters ran in and told Grandma what was happening.
Grandma went to the porch and watched for a few minutes then went back inside and got her purse. She went out to the middle of the street and bought everything from the cart. (My mother’s family was very poor and Grandma couldn’t afford to do this.)
As the Japanese woman pulled her empty cart down the street, the other neighbors came out and asked Grandma why she had done that. She answered that they should all be ashamed. The peddler had little children to take care of and she personally had never done anything to harm any of them and they were being unkind.
Grandma was loved by and kind to everyone, so even if they were upset with her chastisement, they didn’t say so and the rest of that summer they all bought their vegetables from the Japanese peddler.
My grandma’s actions didn’t affect how Japanese Americans were treated in general, but her actions did help this local Japanese family, and hopefully the families in her neighborhood learned to look beyond their biases and extend kindness to everyone.
I don’t have to make grand gestures to make a difference. I can follow my grandma’s example and do what I can in my little area of influence. I encourage you to follow her example too.
Susan Cox is one of The Republic’s community columnists, and all opinions expressed are those of the writer. She is a mother and an adjunct instructor of English at Ivy Tech Community College Columbus and Indiana University Purdue University Columbus. She can be reached at [email protected].
