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Show Majority Of One The New American Trend Violence From Within By KAY ISRAEL If there is a cause to the violence and the dissent in America today it should be traced back to one common point. You would think that there could be some determinable cause for all of the problems of today. Still, historians can't decide on when the cold war began SkTi or wnemer our actions in the past can even be justified. t '. ReP- Boiling (D-Missouri) told his audience last Sat- jr?u r urday that some historians trace the cold war back to f "PwC M1 1917. Others can't decide between 1944 or 1945. This i J i may or may not be the most pressing problem we face, , j. ' yet, though we can follow the trend only the mind of I the once embalmed Stalin will ever fully know. Spanish-American War Historically speaking, others don't even know who S sunk the Maine. It would appear the Hearst paper shot more lead on the war than the rough riders, but the origins of conflict are still in question. The killing of Dr. Martin Luther King can't be attributed to any one time or instance either. You can't show the cause as being in the 17th century when the Negro first was brought to our country. Existence isn't sufficient as cause. The civil war may have been a violent movement to combat the abolishionists, but in the end run it may have postponed the problems of the 20th century. At least, the Negro had something to hope for. 1896 Court Ruling Plessy v. Fergusson ruled the rights of Negroes to be separate but equal. This may have been the beginning of today but its hard to believe be-lieve the now generation inherited much from the generation that either accepted this verdict or began dreaming of migrating back to Africa. Brown v. The Board was a landmark case but the idea of dissent was already there previously. With several of the prominant Negroes joining any organization that would offer hope including the Communist Party. The idea of violence wasn't born in Little Rock or Selma either. Though there were federal troops present the violence was nil compared to what we have had in the last few days. The sight of Gov. Wallace standing in the way of Negro's education was only a token of the idea of resisting the law. Dallas, Nov. 1963 The assasination of President Kennedy in 1963 and the mass executions execu-tions of Charles Speck may have given King's assasin inspiration, but not cause. If you had to locate the cause, it would be hard to find valid examples of the beginning of today's lawlessness or pessimism. Throughout you can locate the major leaders criticising the situation of today despite their previous contributions to today's results. The Maddoxes and the Wallaces decry the lack of respect of the law today, but it wasn't so long ago that Lester Maddox was selling axes made to look like the axe he swung to prevent Civil Rights Act of 1964 from being enforced. The John Birch Society (JBS) is sticking up their bumpers with notices telling everyone to support their local police, while it plasters al over the bill boards the need to impeach our chief justice. If that is whj Lady Bird wants highway beautification, I'm all with her. The complaints of the JBS are strong, but their actions aren't helping the Negro gair his rights or respect for the law. Some Double Talk Friday through Monday there were cries from whites for Negroes to keep cool. Don't show disrespect for the memory of Dr. King. Yet these were the same people who were joking about Linda Bird Johnsor and George Hamilton as if it were the most common gossip. Each of these groups feels sincere in their efforts, but the outbreak of violence and growing disrespect for the law didn't just start with an assasin's bullet or with a riot in Watts. It was probably started the first time an individual felt the law could be disregarded. It was helped by the belief rights could be ignored and nurtured by the belief that disrespect dis-respect was far better than constructive criticism or action. Berkeley, And On The symptoms of America's illness aren't necessarily in Saigon or on Berkeley campus, but rather they may have fought on Omaha Beach or voted for Coolidge for President. The sickness of America might be cured by the now generation, if they can just improve the lessons that they have been taught. Some blame the problems of today on the breaking of family ties at home. Apparently the break started much before then, but came to light under the dissolution of family ties. Unlike the psychiatrist I am not saying the problems of today are due to someone's unhappy childhood or lack of love. Instead the problems we face are nothing new, rather they have grown in intensity. We may have procrastinated just too long. rv n '-J's |