At its February meeting, the KFTC Steering Committee established a Racial Justice Ad Hoc Workteam whose purpose is to develop a workplan for educating members and chapters on racial justice issues this year. As part of its work, the Team hopes to have something in each issue of Balancing the Scales related to racial justice issues. Sometimes that might be an update on local work; sometimes it might be an educational/historical piece; sometimes it might be a personal reflection. This piece, originally printed in our April 2015 issue of Balancing the Scales, comes from Madison County member Megan McKinney.
While Kentucky certainly holds a special place in my heart, I’m actually a native Tennessean. As such, I often feel my heart swell with pride whenever I hear or see any reference to Memphis-style BBQ, a very bright shade of orange, or the great Dolly Parton. Sadly, I always seem to remember a bit of the bad, as well. Shortly after the Civil War, six Confederate veterans got together to create an organization to oppress African Americans. The Ku Klux Klan has become one of the most infamous hate groups in the entire world, and it was started in humble Pulaski, Tennessee. This history wasn’t actively taught when I was in secondary school. However, some of those same values were still evident. While I cannot remember any active racial violence, I can very clearly recall the prejudices and the hate-filled speech. I remember hearing my father frequently using the N-word. I recall how my mother would become obviously uncomfortable and mumble “that’s just not right” whenever she saw an interracial couple. Many years later, I can still easily count the number of non-white students in my grade in elementary school: three African-Americans, three Hispanics, no Asians.
