Tracey DelaneyNov 21, 2022
The first black child ever allowed to attend a white school is only 68 years old now.
White parents pulled their children from school. White teachers refused to teach her.
Ruby Bridges now works as an activist & public speaker
This wasn’t a million years ago. /1
Show threadPeteNov 21, 2022
@TheRealTraceyDelaney You're on the Internet. You're not in Kansas anymore.
Show threadSuecrisNov 22, 2022
@pete @TheRealTraceyDelaney Can you explain what you meant by this comment?
Show threadPeteNov 22, 2022

@NoTwit @TheRealTraceyDelaney Yes. The "first black child ever allowed to attend a white school" is within the context of racist US segregation.

We're on the Internet here. There are plenty of integrated schools in the world.

Show threadSuecrisNov 22, 2022
@pete @TheRealTraceyDelaney Your bio says "I believe in kindness, equality, forbearance, but need practice." Perhaps you should practice sounding more kind, because this response to Ms. Delaney wasn't.
Show threadPete

@NoTwit @TheRealTraceyDelaney Thanks for the advice. I didn't intend to sound unkind. The "You're not in Kansas anymore" was a paraphrase of Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. A perhaps failed attempt at humour, but an attempt nonetheless. I didn't think I was being unpleasant.

I put my values in my profile to keep myself honest and accountable, and also to say I'm imperfect but am trying to improve. That opens me up to be criticised, just as you have done. But be aware of the uneven dynamic there.

Nov 22, 2022 at 8:26pmWeb
Show threadSuecrisNov 22, 2022
@pete @TheRealTraceyDelaney Probably best if you and I both mute each other, and leave it at that.
Show threadPeteNov 22, 2022
@NoTwit @TheRealTraceyDelaney I'm not muting anyone. Sorry I've upset you. I'd like to improve.
Show threadSuecrisNov 22, 2022

@pete @TheRealTraceyDelaney OK, you're not from the U.S., but telling a person that a famous quote is from their country's most famous movie, or "informing" them that the rest of the world wasn't as segregated as their country was/is - those things raise hackles. Chalk it up to a 400+ year history of enslavement and racism. You could call it condescension, and it hits differently in the U.S.

Sigh. I was really hoping to avoid ranting like this on Mastodon.

Show threadPeteNov 22, 2022
@NoTwit @TheRealTraceyDelaney I'm sorry you're feeling exasperated and that our interaction is the cause. I didn't think what I was saying would raise hackles. I don't always know the effect my words will have on others. I can see why there is sensitivity, and I could have been more sensitive.
edit: (I hit send by mistake!)
I'm also excited about Mastodon, and hope for better things. All the best.