Martinsville, IN — or “Martintucky” as many from all over the state unaffectionately call it — is notorious for its history of social intolerance, old and recent. I haven’t been through there in many years, and according to the news video many residents are outraged about this latest event that threatens to continue Martinville’s bad rep to outsiders. I happily live in a much more progressive suburb far north of Martinsville.
I really feel for those residents who truly do not want to be associated with their towns ugly past.
The News Article
At least they’re not Richmond, IN, which has the truly unfortunate ugly truth of being the place where the Ku Klux Klan reformed and raged with strong ranks in the early 20th century. I’m always astonished by the fact that my origins are in a Northern Yankee State that had somehow shared so much with its Southern opposition. Boggles the mind.
Sure, it’s more subdued these days, but will racism ever stop rearing its ugly head? Was the idea of the melting pot really so flawed? Why does a nation as beautiful as the United States of America have to be tarnished by the unfortunate ignorance and intolerance of “Hey, your ancestry/skin color/religion/politics/sexual orientation is different than mine, so you must be eradicated from this land!”
Way back in high school I wrote an editorial about The Melting Pot. I still have the clipping of it. Coming from a then 18-year old, it certainly reads rather naive. Yet the message was undeniably universal.
We all deserve better.
Lost Signal 