It is so much easier to point fingers.
And to shout.
And to lay blame.
They are the problem.
The ones over there.
It is their fault.
If they would just leave.
Or shut up.
Or go away.
It would all be better.
But, it never works that way, does it?
And, it is never that simple.
Whether we are talking about new immigrants to the community and their impact on our schools or presidential campaigns which do their best to pit my supporters against yours.
Solutions to the complicated issues which face us requires hard work if we are to get from where we are to where we would like to be. It means clearly identifying what the larger goal is and being honest about the reality which faces us. It means giving up on the blame game and beginning to talk and work together.
Here is what I find so frustrating.
The shouters grab the mic and make the news.
They name who or what they think is the problem, but stop there.
They don’t do the hard work of building towards solutions.
And, because they make noise and the news, others either begin to believe what they say is true or feel intimidated to counter their shouting because of the backlash.
And, here is what I believe.
Those who want and work for solutions out number the shouters.
But they are often too busy working to take time to shout.
Or, think that if they just do a good enough job the shouting will stop.
But if we are going to take back our schools and our communities and our country, those of us who want and work for something different are going to have to find our voice.
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