Nation of Cowards

Tools

A "nation of cowards" - Those were pretty harsh and provocative words coming out of the US Attorney General Eric Holder's mouth recently. He was referring to how America is a nation of cowards when it comes to having honest discussions about race. Furthermore, in his speech he mentioned that the workplace is mostly integrated, but on the weekends everyone just self segregates.

I agree with the Attorney General because his statement about self-segregation on the weekends is for the most part true. People generally congregate with others who look like them or have a similar cultural background because there is a certain comfort level there. You know you share commonalities with a certain group of people. There is less of a need to explain yourself and your values.

Also, he is correct when he says there is definitely a need to have honest discussions about racial issues. For example, often Asians are stereotyped as being quiet and therefore not suitable for management positions. But if workplaces in America truly valued diversity, there should be a place for people who lead by quiet example. Not everyone has to be a loud mouth.

On the flip side, no one wants to be the bad guy and talk candidly about these racial matters for fear of being labeled a racist. It is very uncomfortable. Because we like to be comfortable, we will go on with our daily lives, tiptoeing around the elephant in the room that is race.