Making A Difference

AUTUMN IS BEAUTIFUL in mid America, trees changing colors, explosively ending the growing season, beckoning celebration. If you happen to be driving around mid America in Autumn, consider the "Mapleleaf" Festival in Carthage, Missouri. Bit, brassy parade,with the occasional septic on wheels. Hordes of middle class caucasians along brightly tree lined streets. Every spectator, every parade participant, lily white. Suddenly, along comes a large, all drum, all girl, all African American band, called "The Cobras". All drums, all girls, all black. They were quite good. But why the black requirement? All drums? fine. All girls? O.K.. But all black? Any special reason? We don't want to be color blind, or blind to anything. We want to be color conscious, aware of as many of nature's infinite varieties, including skin color, as possible. Knowledge always trumps ignorance. Like, critical thinking is da bomb. The question is not what we notice, but what we care about. What should make a difference, and what shouldn't? What should matter, and what shouldn't? The groupings were not coincidental. They were deliberate. And even though it was all good, all possitive, the fact that the racial groupings even existed at all was unfortunate, and unnecessary, if nothing else.