Let’s seize this opportunity to turn our two cities of Columbia into One Columbia

During these trying times the curtain has lifted, and it has exposed the disparities between the two cities that lie within Columbia’s borders.

These two cities look different. The people who live in these two cities see the world differently. And the voices of the people in these two cities are heard at different pitches.

The one city is black; the other is white.

Recently Columbia City Councilman Will Brennan fired off a tone-deaf social media post that erroneously blamed Black Lives Matter protesters for a fire at a local nonprofit.

Brennan issued a series of apologies in which many questioned the sincerity after his “mistake” drew attention, but the ripple effects of his post have not faded.

As expected by the black city of Columbia, the white city of Columbia was seemingly quick to accept Brennan’s half-baked apology — and to suggest that we all just move on.

After all, to those in the white city of Columbia Brennan’s message was well-meaning — and it didn’t directly affect its members by reinforcing negative stereotypes about them.

But to the citizens inside my city of Columbia — the black city — Brennan’s post had a very different impact.

We immediately recognized how Brennan’s words were dismissive of an important and strong movement that is working to make positive change for the future generations of Columbia’s black city.

We immediately recognized that while Brennan’s words could be interpreted as either totally intentional or innocently ignorant, neither was an acceptable excuse.

Words have power and meaning, and an apology does not simply wipe the slate clean. While mistakes are certainly inevitable, forgiveness must always be earned.

In the case of Brennan’s post, the words the councilman used were subliminal, and they invoked the same kind of negative racial imagery favored by Lee Atwater, the late political strategist notorious for creating race-baiting campaign ads.

When you loosely use words like “riot” instead of “protest,” you perpetuate the same dangerous narrative that sees men in Columbia’s black city referred to as “thugs” while those in the adjacent white city are simply described as, well, “men.”

There is a glaring difference between our two cities of Columbia, and it is the white city’s persistence in excusing behavior that adversely affects the black city.

It is a privilege that Columbia’s black city is never afforded.

In order to create a higher level of peace, unity and progression, it is time for both of Columbia’s cities to put in the hard work and energy necessary to bring about peace, unity and progression.

Here are just some of the things we can do:

▪ Be intentional.

Being purposeful in your words and actions — instead of seeking to capitalize on a current event for political pomp — can help dramatically as you seek to understand others.

▪ Practice the four stages — attending, interpreting, responding and remembering — of the listening process.

Often we listen to reply instead of listening to understand. But when we make the effort to genuinely tune into a conversation, provide feedback when necessary and process and remember what’s being said, we begin to lay the groundwork for greater understanding and progress.

▪ Engage.

This may be the hardest action item on the list.

It may not be easy for us to go outside our comfort zones and current realities. It may not be easy for us to make the effort to attend events where people of different races gather — or to have meaningful dialogue with people who have different perspectives.

But when done with persistence and with good intentions, engagement has proven itself to be the best tool in the toolbox when it comes to unifying people — and it can be the one that helps to unify our two cities of Columbia.

Let’s work together — and let’s finally become One Columbia.

Merrell Johnson serves as a board member on several local and regional boards and committees that focus on helping disadvantaged groups throughout the Midlands. He received his Bachelors of Arts in Journalism and Mass Communications from the University of South Carolina and his Master’s in Business Administration with a specialization in Marketing from Louisiana State University-Shreveport.

This story was originally published June 7, 2020 at 3:11 PM.