In the early sixties, while a student in junior high school, I am sure that I heard all of the jokes that made fun of others. These jokes employed disgusting words; ugly labels for Poles, Mexicans, the disabled, women, gays, the elderly, etc. These terms and the jokes that accompanied them kindled my mother’s fury, which she manifested in profound disappointment. And so from her I learned to never use the words and to not retain the attitudes that accompanied them
How excruciatingly disappointed my Republican mother would be to hear almost exclusively Republican voices, including the voices of Republican fathers and mothers, responding to crass efforts to score points by seeking cheap laughs.
In recent years, we have witnessed a former president mock a disabled reporter while his crowd cheered and laughed. We watched the Republican governor of Florida brag at his having lied to and abandoned a group of migrants; while his team on the dais cheered and laughed. These past weeks, the would-be Republican governor of Arizona, and at least another dozen prominent office holders, made jokes and cast aspersions on the elderly spouse of a prominent lawmaker who was attacked by an intruder wielding a claw hammer. Shockingly, their audiences met these unseemly statements with laughs and cheers.
I sometimes wonder if my mother had these offenders and their cheering crowds for an hour, if she could not persuade them, as she did me, to assume a stance of civility. Could she call them, as she did me, to a position of strength by respecting others and treating differences with dignity?
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We welcome comments, however there are some guidelines:
Keep it Clean: Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexual language. Don't Threaten: Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful: Don't lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice: No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading. Be Proactive: Report abusive posts and don’t engage with trolls. Share with Us: Tell us your personal accounts and the history behind articles.