See below the speech that member Arthur Williams gave to our club during our meeting on September 30th, 2020. This was made on behalf of the Rotary Anti-Racism Committee (ARC).
Thank you President Joanne and My Fellow Rotarians. It is my pleasure to address our club this afternoon on it’s (104th anniversary). I was asked by the Anti Racism Committee to address you this afternoon. As I thought about what I would say, what came to mind was ‘Why Rotary?’ Why did I choose to become a member of the Rotary Club? I have two reasons to share with you to answer this question. First, My sponsor Scott Westerman, who reached out and recruited me to the club, Scott was a very special human being — he believed in diversity and inclusion throughout his life, and actively toward that goal. I owe a great deal of gratitude for his visionary leadership in our club. The second answer to this question is Rotary’s foundational belief in service above self. The belief that Rotarians live by The 4 Way Test that drives all that we think, say, and do, that includes building a society of goodwill and better friendships. The values expressed here were powerful in my decision.
The Anti Racism Committee was formed as a place where people of all ideologies, races, creeds, sexes, origins can come together to exchange ideas and create a better society than the one we currently inhabit. The ARC (Anti Racism Committee) under the courageous leadership of Marcia Lane Chair and Marsha Chamberlin Program Subcommittee Chair has been working to address important national and local issues. George Floyd’s needless and heartless death has set in motion a dramatic nationwide response that we refuse to ignore. (We can no longer act as the proverbial ostrich with its head stuck in the ground ignoring these important issues.) Like millions of Americans we were sickened by the image of a police officer kneeling on the neck of a defenseless human being. No matter what your ideological position, these actions are indefensible.
Now having said that, the ARC committee has met weekly to discuss ways to address these important issues. We began by discussing our purpose, had many robust and difficult conversations. This was new unchartered territory for us. We didn’t know! What we didn’t know! ARC met on September 15 in a workshop facilitated by our own Bev Seiford to dialogue and discuss our purpose: What would ‘success’ look like for each of us? and how will we know we’ve achieved it? We had disagreements because race is a very difficult, uncomfortable and yes sensitive topic. Race is one of those topics that is often seen as a ‘Taboo.’ Talked about in whispers and often in private. Race is one of those issues that is unresolved in our country. As our committee has set out on this difficult and uncomfortable journey, we have discovered that we all had a great deal to learn. Change is a very difficult task when it is embedded in our institutions. Institutions are hard-wired to resist change and to keep the status quo. An example of how difficult it is to change we only need to look to the tireless work of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, may she rest in peace. A tireless advocate for women’s rights as well as the rights for all people. In one of the cases she argued she made a reference to the ‘We the People of the United States.’ In the Preamble to the Constitution. In 1787, What did the ‘WE” stand for at that time ? In 1787 the ‘WE” referred to- White Males Only. Women were not a part of the ‘WE,’ Black people were not a part of the ‘WE’—indigenous people were not a part of the ‘WE.’ It was not until the 19thAmendment to the Constitution in 1920 did women get the right to vote. Women had to demonstrate and protest to get the change a hard fought battle with much resistance. Things did not completely change even with the law change. Ruth Bader Ginsburg still faced many obstacles because she was a woman, Jewish and a mother.
Rotray too cannot escape its past. Women were also excluded from the organization in its beginning. Many of our nations institutions followed this pattern established in 1787. A white male dominated society was developed in the nations foundation. Change must come from the community and from constant and often uncomfortable conversations. Only by joining and working together can institutional racism be dismantled and a more just future created for all our community members.
