One diarist wrote about how she could not believe the hatred in this diary - Never before have I seen such hatred . I was in my mid teens when I first came face to face with such hatred, different issues but the same hate. It was 40 years ago.
And I know 40 years before that incident, in the 1930's there was lots of hate going round. Fruit of hate hanging from trees.
This hate is not new, it is ravenous and has been with us always. I think there are various reasons for it, but the emotion, how it stimulates the brain is not new.
But this hate can certainly stun a compassionate person who thinks that all around them are compassionate people. A person who thinks that reason should be the default, not the exception. I was stunned when it first happened around me. I just could not believe people were like that. It hurt very much. But compassion and empathy stimulates my brain in a certain way as well.
We were down south, Louisiana I think, and we were running out of gas. We came upon a gas station, and the people inside would not come out to pump the gas. I remember looking at them peeking out the window of their front door at us. I remember that is was sunny and we were in a red convertible. I asked my mother why they did not come out. I thought they looked scared of us. My mother said that they only probably served local Negroes and they did not want to serve us. Later my father had to walk for gas. I was filled with anxiety for him.
Maybe it is still like that in some back wood places, but not mainstream. What changed this? People did somehow. It is against the law and businesses can be sued.