Time to move on from the past

Dear editor: I saw something online that I simply could not ignore.

It’s a poster campaign at a school district in B.C.’s Interior featuring the superintendent of the school district, a white woman in a business suit, beside the caption, “I have unfairly benefited from the colour of my skin. White privilege is not acceptable.”

I looked at it. Thought about it. Then got angry. Before anyone accuses me of racism, my heritage includes French, First Nations, Polish and Ukrainian. Rather than my Metis’ fathers dark skin, I inherited my mother’s fair skin and blue eyes. Do I feel guilty for that? Not a damn bit!

I would have been just as happy with my father’s complexion. I don’t see colour, I see people as do a majority of people I know.

Well this poster may have been well meaning, by trying to make anyone who, through genetic poker, ended up with fair skin feel guilty because of the way they look, will simply fan racism.

Mind you, this seems to be typical of today’s overblown political correctness, whereby we apologize on behalf of long dead ancestors, for every misdeed that’s occurred over the past thousand years.

There’s a line from a Mellencamp song that says it all for me: “This world is a wreck. I’m tired of being politically correct. I try more now, though I didn’t at first, but the hypocrites make it worse and worse. Looking down their nose at what people say but their just words and words are OK. It’s what you do not what you say. If you’re not part of the future then get out of the way!”

I have no problem with our leaders righting the wrongs done to those living, but what I take from that is to quit living in the past. It’s what happens from now on that counts. Andy Richards

Summerland