Finding Humor In Troubled Race Relations
For decades Saturday Night Live has helped us look at ourselves and acknowledge our faults and foibles through comedy. While we have made progress in many areas, some aspects of race relations in America still have a ways to go. Certainly there is a canyon between hate crimes and the comedy of racial scorekeeping as shown in the sketch.
But I have decided to highlight a problem through comedy and satire rather than chronicle real examples of crime. We get enough of that and I'm not so sure how much good that accomplishes.
Hate crimes have shown an increase in various places around the country and hate crimes and hate on the internet are the subjects of two free public events in Yakima next week.
From 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, the Yakima Hate Crimes Forum will take place at the Henry Beauchamp Community Center, 1211 S. Seventh St. featuring six panelists from the FBI, county and city law enforcement and the Yakama Nation along with information about hate crimes and time for informal discussion.
On Wednesday evening, Think & Drink: One Click Away — Hate and the Internet is set for 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Gilbert Cellars, 5 N. Front St. Registration is required. It’s open to all ages.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center news release, the organization which tracks hate group activity nationwide, says Washington is home to 26 hate groups, including white nationalist, anti-immigrant, anti-LGBT, black nationalist and anti-Muslim organizations.
While you are deciding if you will attend one of the forums next week, at least watch the SNL skit and chuckle at the absurdity on display and maybe laugh at bit at how ridiculous the path can become if we don't find real ways to get along and love and respect each other.
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