A Social Justice Agenda Viewed through the Eyes of a White Heart of Transformation

by John Gregory Evans

© 5/4/2020 1:44:03 AM

“She’ll carelessly cut you and laugh while your bleeding.”       Billy Joel

During the major eras of my life regarding women I never quite viewed myself as a sexist. I always felt justified through three accounts of domestic violence and sexual assaults by women upon my child-like appearance. Justified or not one must come to the inevitability to one’s own misery in life, and perhaps, aspire to transform from the heart to a moral and equitable vision, after all, not all women are the same.

Billy Joel’s song, She’s Always a Woman to Me and especially the line

“She’ll carelessly cut you and laugh while your bleeding,” only seemed to add fuel to an already out-of-control bon-fire within my own heart and soul. But I changed. How did I change? It appeared to me every woman I met carelessly cut me and laughed while I was bleeding. However, the reality is quite the opposite once a man realizes the reality to understanding himself and his own reality.

            My gender lens was misconstrued by childhood events. After decade upon decade my life became more and more miserable through what I now realize to be selfish seeds for a self-gratifying nature. Yet, so many women have helped me throughout my life. At some point I had a decision to make regarding turning this old ship around. Knowing women have essentially worked diligently behind the scenes to facilitate healing, I cannot help but regard women as healers, wise women, and co-laborers within an already corrupt global community of white Male Supremacy that I have not ever wished to be a part of. So, a decision was made. I decided to begin understanding women in lieu of harassment injected into their personal environments. Once I accepted the injustices as human frailties I began to care.

I sincerely began to care for women as my second loving wife, Judy, demonstrated a caring, loving marriage with me. She very clearly understood my views and supported me through an eleven-year anniversary of good marriage and spiritual counseling. I have learnt Judy is a humble and caring spirit clearly devoted to her family of myself, her mother, and our Shih Tzu Paavo. She is a caring resident of God’s beautiful green earth, plants, nature, and trees. She is sensitive and very, very caring. Now, she has shown through her heart how to transform a white man’s corrupt heart to a heart that views so many different injustices in our world.

Racial equity and inequality are two of Judy’s primary concerns. She has taught me well and put me on a path of wellness to see that social justice is not alive and well in our world. I wish to embrace these concerns as well knowing quite well the journey to be long and arduous. However distant the journey to be, I feel sexism, racism, and white male supremacy must be defeated. And, it already has in my own heart. Certainly, I have work to accomplish but has recently become an imperative for me. I wish to be the difference in someone’s life.

I do, become more and more available to the interpersonal violence regarding male or female ego, arrogance, and corruptibility within people’s hearts. Mine included. Change can be difficult. A conversion seeks out compassion for others, not of the self-centered individual who only cares for his/herself. I have personally witnessed this behavior in men more than in women. If men were to render women the total and absolute respect they sincerely deserve, not only would this bear good fruit for all, but the emotional evolution for our global community would be not only advantageous, but create a happy place for everyone.

A mainstream component is to intercept and disarm the “male cultures of power that operate to exclude, marginalize, or disempower women. Notice how men resist accepting responsibility for male privilege and male supremacy and speak out.” www.paulkivel.com.

I began to comprehend empowering women as mush as I possible am able since reading the centuries of spiritual poetry by women. I very clearly understand as a male writer how women have raised their voices through the power of the written word. One, only must read (and then understand), poets as Dickinson, Griffiths, Sachs, Julian of Norwich, Catherine of Sienna, Finch, and oh, multitudes more, to grasp the worthiness of literary contributions to our world. And for me, this makes all the difference in the world.

My future entails the literary logistics discovering others who feel the same way in terms of literary accomplishments or endeavors. I seek out within my own heart first respect, consent, and mutuality regarding my next steps in challenging (resisting where I must), sexism, racism, and male supremacy.

Otherwise, our futures remain bleak as it was during the dismal reality of the Dark Ages. We have no other choice but to challenge these damages occurring daily in plain sight. Write on!

I wish to thank Paul Kivel at www.paulkivel.com for his magnanimously informative research and speaking out through his article “Are You Challenging Sexism and Male Supremacy” written by Paul Kivel, © 2005. Thank you for encouraging me to stand for what is right. The power of your voice has galvanized my perspectives and response to such issues that very clearly must be addressed, by all men.