Taking A Knee Is Meaningless Without Action

Last Tuesday was named Blackout Day on social media, to recognize anti-black racism and police brutality, in the wake of the tragic killing of George Floyd by a group of Minneapolis police officers.

I’m not generally a fan of campaigns like this on social media, because it is easy to press a few computer buttons, click a mouse and consider oneself “woke” – that is, someone who stands up against racism.

I’m more of the school of “actions speak louder than words” on a daily basis, as is my wife Denise Alexander. I learned Denise was much more than “woke” when I saw all five-feet of her stand up to a six-foot-four racist landscaper in Florida, who spoke about blacks in a derogatory way.

Not only did she tell him on the spot that his services were no longer required, but she quickly asked our black handyman to take on the extra duties of tending to our greenery—to make a point every time the racist landscaper came down our street.

Nonetheless, my hair nearly stood on end when I saw those of the Jewish faith happily embracing the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter.

It is one thing to speak out against racism, and we as Jews, have always made it our business to stand up for the downtrodden. Many activists and lawyers were heavily involved in the civil rights movement in the early 60s in the southern U.S.