Nate Parker and the birthing of a truly new nation: an exercise in potential healing.
This whole world is in need of some healing. I am so sad about this. But I see an opportunity. I see an opportunity for Nate Parker to truly show that he understands the severity of the situation. How? By supporting victims of sexual violence. As stats go - sexual violence and Black womanhood unfortunately, have a long history (read: slavery. I could go on here, but I won't.) Most women currently imprisoned in the US have had a history of sexual violence. This is not about the fact that he got off and so is "innocent"- this could have easily been the case even if he wasn't innocent. It would be great if courts worked that way. But we know better. This is about a young woman whose life after the attack took the usual road of self-destruction many victims of sexual violence exhibit. We need to all honor her life, and the millions others, who have lived and continue to live with the debilitating effects of sexual violence. This conversation needs to be shifted - instead of Parker using his energy to shy away or even deny it - and so the life of this women and the experience of so many women the world over - he ought to be advised to embrace this and be like, "You know what? I understand that this is an issue. And I am willing to commit to its healing." In this way, in my eyes, he will continue, with integrity, towards that path of fulfilling his role as a community leader. The path to liberation is no longer about binaries: black, white; left, right; innocent, guilty. The path to liberation requires new ways of thinking. And I believe Nate Parker has what it takes. Or at least I hope he does.
