White Male Syndrome

“They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces…” Matthew 23:5-7 (NRSV)

There is a disease that is spreading like wildfire across our land. The CDC has yet to study it fully and give us a break down of its symptoms but it is out there and it isn’t pretty to see someone who has caught it.  While it is predominately striking the male population there have been a few isolated cases of females contracting it. And while it is overwhelmingly a Caucasian malady a very few cases have been reported in minority individuals but these have all been males. And although it can be contracted by any white male those between the ages 40-70 seem most susceptible. It is “White Male Syndrome” or WMS for short.

Observed symptoms of WMS are:

·        An inability to comprehend the world as it is presently configured,
·         A denying of the reality of racism, sexism, and hetero-sexism,
·         A deep seated need to shout loudly and bully others,
·         A sense that a wrong has been done to them just because things aren’t as they believe they should be,
·         A lack of understanding of what science clearly says about climate change being human caused, and
·         An overwhelming need to return to an idealized version of the past that was never real but they believed to be true.
WMS is seen most clearly in those of middle to lower middle income who have experienced life as somehow unfair to them because they have not been able to achieve the American Dream as they feel they are entitled too. Often the irrational desire to carry a gun accompanies WMS. And they have an unreasonable need to ware items that say “Make America Great Again.”

All joking aside, what we are seeing in the presidential campaign this year is a deep seated frustration on the part of mostly white middle-aged males. They feel that life as they know it isn’t life as it should be. They feel that what they have been raised to expect in their lives isn’t coming about. They know that everything around them is changing and that a lot of the change directly impacts how they are perceived and received in society and the world. They are experiencing the reality that the promises Wall Street, Madison Avenue, conservative Christianity, and major segments of society have made them cannot be fulfilled. The roles they have been groomed to take on have been coopted by others that were never supposed to have them. Or these roles have been eliminated or drastically reduce in their importance. The privileges they were guaranteed have been granted to others that were never supposed to have them either. It’s as if the earth’s magnetic poles have switched and they can’t find true north.

As someone who falls squarely within the demographics of the group I do understand what they are feeling. I myself struggle with trying to understand by place and role in society and the world. I am finding that what I thought I knew about life, relationships, families, work, and society has somehow faded almost entirely away and there isn’t a clear picture formed in my mind of what will replace it. I can tell you what I am not but I have a hard time telling you what I am because the words and metaphors aren’t there to help me like they once were. It is a bit scary to look around and realize that what you felt entitled to, what you believed your role was, what you understood as the way the world worked, and what you have been raised and trained for are all slipping away and that there isn’t anything you can do about it. Things have changed.

Bob Dylan wrote and sang a song in 1964 that he wanted people to hear as a statement about change and all that was happening at that time. It is entitled The Times They Are A-Changin’”. Here are links to the lyrics and to a YouTube video of him singing the song:

http://www.letssingit.com/bob-dylan-lyrics-the-times-they-are-a-changin-qk2lmpb

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7qQ6_RV4VQ

While all the verses are worth sharing and I think as valid and valuable today as in 1964 I want to share the fourth verse as I think it speaks to my topic in this Musing:

Come mothers and fathers throughout the land

And don't criticize what you can't understand

Your sons and your daughters are beyond your command

Your old road is rapidly aging

Please get out of the new one if you can't lend your hand

For the times they are a-changin'.

Dear God, help me to find a way to live in this changing time. Help me to explore the discomfort I’m feeling to understand what it is that is bothering me. Help me be a voice to others who are like me so that we can find a way forward into the world that is emerging. Be with all those who feel displaced, unsure and frustrated because what they thought the world should be hasn’t come about. Help us all to move down the new road together find our way, being led by you. Amen.