When I stated at a June 17 meeting of the Umatilla County Board of Commissioners that I did not know what “systemic racism” was, I could and should have been a little more specific.

My comments arose in a discussion of the riots going on in the wake of the George Floyd homicide in Minneapolis. While I have been on the planet long enough to understand and deplore what cultural racism can look like and how it sounds, I could and should have said that I do not understand how systemic racism looks and feels in Umatilla County, right here, right now; that I would like some current examples and would like to be part of a solution to help eradicate it, if and where it exists.

With two marked exceptions, I, and my fellow commissioners, have received slings and arrows of mostly meaningless diatribe from several angry individuals filled with anger and hate, profanity and foul language. That isn’t at all what I had in mind. I was looking for a real situation, a real problem that we could dig into, find accuracy and move to a solution. When I attempted to recontact senders explaining what I was looking for, my efforts were again greeted with a response similar to the first; no current problem cited, no proffered solutions, nothing to go on — just more anger, hate and profanity. With one, I tried several times with the same result until I, finally, just gave up on him. With those who were civil, I offered to meet for a meaningful discussion.

To date, three individuals have met with me, in person, to discourse on the issue. One involved a personnel matter with many conflicting facets that is ongoing. With the others, nothing I could make tangible in the way of either current or systemic racism to solve and, certainly, nothing in the way of solutions. All of my life, I have viewed myself as a problem solver. I still do. My ears have always been open to listen, I’ve always had a desire to find truth and my mind was always available to weigh, contemplate and offer best suggested courses of action. I have a “fix it” attitude. But, it is hard to solve a problem if there is no current problem presented to solve. However, I remain open to hear concerns explained and will always work to solve injustice. Please, though, clean up the communication. My mother used to say, “Profanity is a sign of a limited vocabulary and a limited intellect.” (She had her ways of shaping a young mind.) I doubt that the writers would wish to be so described.

I know racism exists in our world, even in Umatilla County. I have faced it down one on one when I was engaged in a business career, doing my best to bring awareness and intelligence to those expressing it. We made progress one person at a time. I would still do that. As a commissioner, being a local legislator and manager, I can stop racism in its tracks within the county employee force over which we have purview. What you and I can both do is to be a proper model to others and call out racism when encountered. If it is “nipped in the bud” by all of us every time it is encountered, racism will disappear. Commissioners cannot legislate stupidity out of existence; were it possible, it would be done.

Racism is a lack of intelligence in the one who carries it — and it belongs in past history, not current thinking. It has no place here or anywhere. I hope our society gets over it and soon. It is something on which we all have to work — to bring tolerance, understanding and peace to our world.