October 25, 2005
Civil Rights and Condi Rice: What If...
A photograph of Condi Rice? I know what you are thinking...why would Rich put up a photo of the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice? Has he gone crazy? Is he coming out as a Republican? Well, I am not crazy and I am not switching parties. I was intrigued by an interview with her that revealed some childhood experiences that likely affected who she is today (and how she thinks about things). In this respect, it is a lesson in cultural socialization -- which is what I study in my research on Asian American immigrant, refugee, adopted, and U.S.-born children.
Secretary of State Rice returned to her home state of Alabama and shared some memories of her childhood, which includes having been friends with one of the girls who was killed in the infamous Birmingham church bombing that helped spark the Civil Rights movement. I was most struck with the following comments that she made, as reported in the New York Times.
Ms. Rice said she did not learn about the difficulties encountered by her father, a prominent minister, in trying to vote until she was a professor of international relations at Stanford.
"My parents were in some ways determined to shelter me a little bit from the hard side of Birmingham," Ms. Rice said in an interview. "So there were things that they didn't talk about that I learned later."
She added, "There were things that I witnessed that they couldn't hide, but I wish that I'd had more time to talk to my mother."
Ms. Rice said she also wished she had talked more with an aunt who earned a doctorate in Victorian literature in the 1950's from the University of Wisconsin, but who had difficulty finding a place to live while she studied there.
After reading the excerpt, I started to wonder if Ms. Rice would have a different attitude about racial and world politics if her family had spoken more honestly and openly with her about the challenges and difficulties of growing up Black in American in the 1960s. Might it have affected her differently if her parents had racially inculcated her by talking about their experiences with racism? Might she have developed a different outlook or chosen a different course in life? Put bluntly, would she still have become the ardent Republican who downplays the need for affirmative action and advocates for the Iraq War or would she have become a moderate/liberal Democrat with a different understanding of living in a racially diverse world? Perhaps there is still time to change...
Posted by richlee at October 25, 2005 06:00 AMi have to admit i was shocked when i saw condi's photo. i was trying to write a blog in honor of Rosa Parks (who died today) and was checking your blog to make sure it had not been done already only to find Ms. Rice! I agree that socialization must have had an impact on her choices but i also believe that individuals can still make important life choices and have a particular responsibility to do so when their voice has tremendous power and influence over others.
I do not know a lot about Rosa Parks cultural socialization other than the fact that she was a seamstress and was active in the NAACP. Rosa Parks in speaking about the arrest that sparked the 381 day boycott of the bus system organized by MLK Jr. said
“At the time I was arrested I had no idea it would turn into this,” Mrs. Parks said 30 years later. “It was just a day like any other day. The only thing that made it significant was that the masses of the people joined in.”
Parks was arrested and fined 14$ for her action. After this historic moment, she had trouble finding work in Alabama and had to move to Detroit. This December 1st it will 50 years to the day when she refused to give up her seat on the bus. it is an inspirational story and life.
stine
those are excellent points re: condi rice. i should have added that there is tremendous individual difference in the formation of political attitudes and it is moderated by numerous individual and environmental factors. parenting and socialization are just some sources. personality and later life experiences (e.g., mentors, education) also play a role.
i also was torn when i heard that rosa parks died and had intended to write about her as a contrast to condi rice. instead, i will just refer folks to 'stine's blog -- three suns @ http://threesuns.blogspot.com/.
Posted by: rich at October 25, 2005 08:25 AMhi ms rice i am an irany young /i have a question from u /
what was the reason of your sacces?
i really like you and bye
hi ms rice i am an irany young .i have a question from u.
what was the reason of your sacces?
i really like you and bye