In the summer of 1967 Detroit, in the midst of a bloody race riot, a disgruntled protestor threw a molotov cocktail into a business. It was a hot summer day with 20 mph winds that fanned the cocktail fire. Within minutes, before the fire department could arrive to put out the flames, the flames jumped to a house next to the business. Residents scrambled with their garden hoses which all too soon proved inadequate. The fire jumped from roof to roof.
The ninth house in the burning row belonged to the arsonist who'd thrown the Molotov cocktail.
This sounds like a parable or a made up story.
Sorrowfully, it's a true story. A plainclothes policeman standing on the corner witnessed the tragedy.
From 1964-1967, several large cities across America were plagued by race riots. The riots were synonymous with summer, and President Johnson, in July of 1967 created an 11 member National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. They were to explore the when, why, and how, and make recommendations.
What would become known as the Kerner report, named after a member of the commission, would make some dire predictions if improvements and changes were not made. The report warned of an American system of Apartheid and a system that was moving towards two societies, one black, one white.
Foremost, the story is a reminder to "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," be it cruel or kind, prejudice or accepting, loving or hateful, it comes back in kind~~to burn or to bless.
.
Comments