Understanding is key to healing racial divide

The racial divide in America, under the radar for many years, is back in its most frightening manner. Our elected officials, religious leaders and social scientists have advanced a number of theories for the recent stream of civil unrest, but all agree that violence is not the solution.

Our collective prayers should go out to the families of victims and survivors of the recent horrific events. We grieve with the families of five slain policemen in Dallas. We grieve with the families of the African-American men shot by police officers in Louisiana and in Minnesota. South Carolina is a year removed from a similar atrocity. These senseless acts have no place in our communities.

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A study in 2015 by the Pew Research Center found that half of Americans believe racism is a serious problem. The legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is intertwined with the effectiveness of peaceful demonstrations. It works, but only if both sides of our racial divide are willing to come together to achieve a common purpose and appreciate racial and cultural differences.

As Americans, we must redouble our efforts to have an open and honest conversation about race relations; otherwise, we will continue our descent into a nation where civil unrest is the norm.

Students at Claflin University have traditionally and historically led activities to ease racial tensions and eradicate social injustice. We will remain steadfast in our commitment to keep the student body fully informed and engaged to promote racial and cultural unity.

I will encourage our faculty to play a central role through lectures, forums, invited guests, assemblies and seminars. We can offer no less as the state’s first historically black college, whose original charter in 1869 prohibited discrimination “regardless of race, complexion, or religious opinion.”

As a nation, we must begin to treat each other with compassion and understanding while appreciating our differences. We must bring an end to the violence that plagues our nation and uplift America as a place where we all are respected and live as one, regardless of race, color, creed, gender and all differences that divide us.