Human potential

I call it "fringing"


Fringing is the sort of prejudice exhibited when we only pay attention to the fringe element of a group while largely ignoring the rest of it. It is when people assume all gays are like those who dress and behave outlandishly for the media when in fact most are as discrete about their sexuality as others are inclined to be.

It is when people assume that all Moslems either are terrorists or sympathize with them when in fact the vast majority of Moslems are perfectly peaceful people who are just as shocked and angered by terrorist behaviors as anyone else is.

It is when people assume that all the supporters of Proposition 8 are a bunch of intolerant Nazis.

It is when people assume that opponents of proposition 8 are a bunch of perverts who want to destroy marriage and open the door to other truly dangerous practices.

It is when people assume Conservatives are all right-wing whackos.

It is when people assume that all Liberals are left wing nut jobs.

It is when people assume that Moderates are all wishy-washy fence-sitters who haven’t got the courage to stand up and choose sides.

I could go on, and on, and on.

There are, no doubt all sorts of other examples of fringing that the respected reader could come up with on their own. Suffice it to say that anytime we might catch ourselves thinking, or worse, saying things like “they’re all…” we are in the fringing danger zone.

I brought this up today because it is the last day of Black History Month, and I have seen a lot of really great articles about the contributions of African Americans have made to America. I’d like to see more and I don’t need to wait until next February.

But I saw nothing about lost potential. No doubt there were some. I watch very little TV, but I do read a lot. I’m sorry to say I missed any lost potential articles. Fringing is one of the biggest culprits in lost potential, if not the biggest.

When some people look at a young African American man, they see a potential gangster where I see a potential police officer. They see a potential thief where I see a potential city councilman. They see a potential drug dealer where I see a potential doctor. They see potential welfare mothers where I see potential small business leaders, managers and CEOs.

Where some people, who often are well-meaning, with only the best of intentions, see potential failure, misery and destruction, I see potential success. I see Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice and President Barack Obama. They and so many like them have achieved success, often from beginnings that did not foretell much in the way of greatness.

Potential for good. Potential for bad. We all have both. I would prefer to encourage and reward the potential for good rather than focus on fighting and punishing the potential for bad. I think it works better.

Human potential is truly boundless. I hope you occasionally reach for yours.