Last month, focusing on holiday gift ideas for my nephews, who live back east, and to whom I was planning to visit shortly, I asked my brother what Alex, my 5-year-old nephew, would want for the holidays. Without hesitation, his response was, “get him a (New York) Giants, or (Pittsburgh) Steelers jersey. “Well”, I asked, “would he like a SF Giants or 49er shirt or hat?” since those were my San Francisco hometown teams. “No!” was the immediate reply. Out of curiosity, I verified that answer when I saw Alex in person. And it was true, he had no interest in, and would not wear a jersey from a team that was not one of his favorites and in this case, which represented the hometown ?territories” of his parents.
Last week many Lake County readers were shocked and utterly saddened by an attack on a couple driving in their automobile through Nice on the night of Jan. 2. They were victims of young people who claimed the town as their ?territory. According to press reports, “The victim and his girlfriend were driving through the area when four subjects ? a male and three females ? allegedly yelled at them to leave because it was their “territory,” according to reports from the scene.
The man pulled over and confronted them and was allegedly hit several times in the head with a metal baseball bat by the male in the group, the reports indicated.”
It is obvious that these residents crossed a line of morality in their connection to their hometown territory, but where and when and why does that line get crossed? And how do we prevent our young people from crossing that line?
Opening day at Dodger Stadium in 2011, a game that brought together two California teams, LA Dodger”s, and SF Giants” enthusiasts, ended in tragedy when a San Francisco fan was severely beaten because of his black and orange Giant”s baseball cap. I spoke with my brother that week and he asked me what happened and why. My retort focused on the geography of the incident, stating, “that would never happen in Northern California.” I was forced to reconsider my off the cuff statement shortly thereafter, when violence broke out among team rivals during the SF 49er/Oakland Raiders” exhibition game at Candlestick Park. In my beloved, peaceful Northern California.
These fans crossed the line of decency. As adults, we need to model behavior in all aspects of our society; to quote Martin Luther King, Jr., whose birthday we celebrate, “the time is always right to do the right thing.”
Rooting for the home team is an integral part of our communities, and as I write this column, the 49ers are beating the Saints in the playoffs and I am glad! My son and I enjoy going to competitive games, both professional and at the school where I work, and rooting for the home team.
But how do we keep our kids involved in their communities, root for their home team, yet prevent them from taking that fatal step, which crosses the line? Maintaining communication, providing caring relationships and doing the right thing as adults, can go a long way toward making our world a better place where all are safe to walk, cheer for the home team and simply drive our cars at night.
King, whose wisdom and passion for positive change, left a legacy of inspirational rhetoric, which remains just as relevant today. “People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don”t know each other; they don”t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.” He reminds us to continue to dream of a better world and that, “we must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
I hope that the victims of last week”s incident recuperate with a full recovery and that when we remember King this month, we take his words to heart.
Lake County Publishing is proud to welcome new columnist Robin Fogel-Shrive . She teaches at Lower Lake High School and is the project director for The Lake County Big Read literacy program. She can be reached at rshrive@yahoo.com.
