Smart Talk: Can we talk about race?

What to look for on Smart Talk Tuesday, May 19, 2015:

In the aftermath of the assassination of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King in 1968.

After the acquittal on murder charges of pro football Hall-of-Famer, film star, and sports analyst O.J. Simpson in 1995.

And then presidential candidate Barack Obama’s More Perfect Union speech in Philadelphia during the 2008 campaign.

All were occasions when race, racial differences, and racial inequality were discussed.

Usually, we’d hear “this is the catalyst for a frank conversation on race.”

The violent and sometimes deadly confrontations between police and African-Americans and subsequent civil unrest over the past year has many calling once again for that race conversation — a discussion many black and white Americans have difficulty with.

This time though there seem to be organized efforts to talk about race.  Communities, institutions like colleges and churches, and organizations are scheduling events.

One is set for Wednesday, May 20 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Harrisburg Area Community College’s Lancaster campus.  Three of the planners of Leadership Summit: Dialogue on Race appear on Tuesday’s Smart Talk.  They are Stephen Sharp, a school counselor at Landisville Middle School & Co-President of the Lancaster County School Counselors Association, Nick Peterson, adjunct faculty at Lancaster Theological Seminary & organizer with BLACKLIVESMATTER717, Dana Wile, a graduate student at Millersville University. 

The Culture of Silence and Culture of Violence: A Conversation on Race and Authority is an event scheduled Thursday, May 28 at the Stuart Community Center in Carlisle.