Diversity more systemic than racism

We live in the greatest country in the entire world. It has many inequalities and a number of negative attributes, but these are an exception, not the norm.

Yes, there is racism in America but is it systemic? I think not.

Even though there is racism in terms of the color of one’s skin, there is also ethnic racism, religious racism, financial racism and gender racism, to name just a few. As long as people are human, racism and bigotry will continue. There are bad people in the world; there always will be.

Despite these bigoted, intolerant prejudices, stepping back and looking at the big picture provides a perspective of just how unbiased the average individual and the majority of the populace are.

I tuned in to a PBS special the other evening and watched as the famous composer John Williams conducted an orchestra that performed his legendary music selection with perfection. As I watched, I noticed that this particular symphony orchestra was not unlike other orchestras I had observed before.

Seventy to 100 participants make up a fully assembled orchestra, all with one primary goal and passion in mind, making beautiful music. These individual musicians come from all different walks of life.

There is a mixture of race and gender among the members, differing backgrounds, religious beliefs, political views, et cetera. They all gather together and contribute their distinctive talent to the assemblage with none of these dissimilarities in mind.

These individual talents are orchestrated (no pun intended) to produce a superb and emotional musical sound.

How could this possibly happen in a systemic racist environment? Frankly, it wouldn’t be conceivable.

I recently picked up a copy of Inc. magazine and read with interest stories of the many gifted entrepreneurs that grace the pages of this monthly periodical. Similar to an orchestra, the spectrum of people was as diverse as diverse could be.

How do people with various skin colors and assorted differences become so successful? How could this possibly happen in a systemic racist environment? Frankly, it couldn’t even be imaginable. Many other examples of groups, professional, medical, sports or otherwise exist harmoniously regardless of differences.

Rather than look back at a year full of animosity of differences and divisions, let’s look ahead to a new year and focus on what we all have in common: the commonality in all of us — love of country, love of neighbor and, most of all, love of family and friends. We don’t have to encourage these unifying traits to be systemic; they already are.

The opinions expressed above belong solely to the author and do not represent the views of the Boulder City Review. They have been edited solely for grammar, spelling and style, and have not been checked for accuracy of the viewpoints.

G. Kevin Savord is currently a professional pilot and former small business owner. He can be reached at gksavord@gmail.com.