Brown + 54

Today is the 54th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision that "separate but equal" was a vain fantasy - separate guarantees unequal.

Why do we take so long to adopt progressive ideals when it was eminently clear that certain institutionalized norms of society at the time of their being challenged that they were doomed: e.g. woment's suffrage; the Equal Rights Amendment; human rights for People with disabilities; same-sex marriage.

We know that Paul Robeson was fucked over pointlessly and that there never should have been circumstances requiring Jackie Robinson to endure absurd hazing before black men could play baseball.

There was no sane doubt that slavery was an abomination on humankind and that preventing participation at every level by women and other oppressed pejoratively-labeled groups were blatant examples of bigotry/prejudice. But such things as kowtowing to some badly translated ancient texts or exulting in living in the penthouse persist.

Even the most ardent segregationists knew in their souls that they were in the wrong and would eventually go down in ridicule - remember Governors Faubus and Wallace, etc.

As we get more universally connected perhaps the lag 'twixt realization of a concept and its implementation will dwindle. I can hardly wait.

Love.