2008 Woodie Awards
Is Our Morality Really to Blame?
Tanisha Mathis
Issue date: 10/28/05 Section: Opinions
- Page 1 of 2 next >
Whether its Janet Jackson's nipple, Britney Spears' gyrating hips or racy Monday Night Football skits someone always pines for the better days, the good old days, the more moral days when sexuality was not rampant in our culture. When, exactly, were those more moral days in our country's existence?
Was it in the 1950s when Jim Crow was the law of the land and citizens were murdered because they dared to register Blacks to vote? Was it in the 1940s when Americans of Japanese decent were placed in internment camps after the attack on Pearl Harbor?
Or maybe it was in the early 1900s when women were not allowed to vote. America appears less moral with every question and I haven't mentioned the two most infamous periods of American repugnancy, the enslavement of Africans and the genocide of Native Americans. No matter the social and political problems during any period in our nation's history, Americans seem to think demure styles of dress and "Father Knows Best" sitcoms is synonymous with a supreme sense of morality.
I'm not one for advocating rampant sex, nudity and the dismissal of decorum in the public forum but its unfortunate morality is seen in such a limited spectrum.
There are many traits associated with human decency: compassion, respect and the treatment of others being just a few. If we were as moral as we have pretended to be throughout history there would be less movies like "Schindler's List" and "Hotel Rwanda". The moral majority is selective when it comes to morality only equating it with sexuality. I would like to point out in all the embarrassing periods of American history there has been sexual deviance. The one main difference is that in the past it was hidden, today it is played out in public. Not that the latter is appropriate but it seems the real problem is not that we are less moral, just less discreet with our sins.
We're more sanctimonious than moral. We don't practice the act of morality; we just master the appearance of it. Don't celebrate gambling by endorsing cities such as Las Vegas; simply keep our multi-million dollar gambling endeavors to ourselves like Bill Bennett.
Was it in the 1950s when Jim Crow was the law of the land and citizens were murdered because they dared to register Blacks to vote? Was it in the 1940s when Americans of Japanese decent were placed in internment camps after the attack on Pearl Harbor?
Or maybe it was in the early 1900s when women were not allowed to vote. America appears less moral with every question and I haven't mentioned the two most infamous periods of American repugnancy, the enslavement of Africans and the genocide of Native Americans. No matter the social and political problems during any period in our nation's history, Americans seem to think demure styles of dress and "Father Knows Best" sitcoms is synonymous with a supreme sense of morality.
I'm not one for advocating rampant sex, nudity and the dismissal of decorum in the public forum but its unfortunate morality is seen in such a limited spectrum.
There are many traits associated with human decency: compassion, respect and the treatment of others being just a few. If we were as moral as we have pretended to be throughout history there would be less movies like "Schindler's List" and "Hotel Rwanda". The moral majority is selective when it comes to morality only equating it with sexuality. I would like to point out in all the embarrassing periods of American history there has been sexual deviance. The one main difference is that in the past it was hidden, today it is played out in public. Not that the latter is appropriate but it seems the real problem is not that we are less moral, just less discreet with our sins.
We're more sanctimonious than moral. We don't practice the act of morality; we just master the appearance of it. Don't celebrate gambling by endorsing cities such as Las Vegas; simply keep our multi-million dollar gambling endeavors to ourselves like Bill Bennett.
Be the first to comment on this story