Governor Tim Walz,
We were moved this week in Philadelphia by your story, especially when Vice President Kamala Harris shared that you knew the impact on school culture of the football coach becoming the faculty advisor to the nascent Gay Straight Alliance.
We are writing to ask you to use your story as a White man and a veteran to play a similar role now during the campaign to impact American culture by sharing that:
- While you benefited from the G.I. Bill, it is a sad part of American history that Black veterans did not have that same opportunity.
- A Harris-Walz administration will ensure that future policies intended to build the American middle class are accessible to every American.
Here’s how we would share this if it were our story:
- We were all saddened and angered to learn, too recently, that the vast majority of Black veterans did not receive the benefits of the G.I. Bill.
- As an example, only 0.7 percent of Black veterans of WWII received G.I. Bill home loan benefits, due to a number of race-based barriers, and homes, as we know, are the primary vehicle to build wealth we can pass down to our kids.
- When one of our community members shared these facts with his dad who had received G.I. benefits to go to college, and whose grandfather had received G.I. benefits to buy a home, his dad wept. It was the first time our friend ever saw his dad cry.
- “Thank you for your service” never sounded more hollow than when we learned our nation’s thanks were not equally distributed.
- To be clear, we are thrilled that White G.I.s received these benefits. Not a single White G.I. should feel guilty about this. They earned it. We owe them this gratitude for putting their lives on the line for our freedom, and for defending and extending freedom around the world.
- As some cry foul about affirmative action and against DEI programs as somehow unfair and un-American, it is useful to remember that the largest affirmative action program in American history, the one that helped build the American middle class more than any other, was largely denied to Black Americans and given only to White Americans.
- We also learned that this was only one example of White affirmative action, beginning with our Constitution in the 18th century through the Homestead Act in the 19th century to redlining in the 20th century.
- As Americans, we just wish this same hand-up was given to every G.I., regardless of whether the color of their skin was white, black, or any beautiful shade in between, because they all bleed red, white, and blue.
As a social studies teacher, you understand that:
- Your story told this way would help every American understand our shared American history, even those ugly parts that make us uncomfortable.
- Understanding our history is the first step to ensure our future is one in which we live into our American Promise of one nation with liberty and justice for all.
We are inspired by what you have done in Minnesota and stand ready to help you bridge divides, expanding your vision for One Minnesota to a vision for One America where the American Dream is possible for every American.
With deep gratitude for your service,
A few White Dudes for Harris-Walz and Pennsylvania Members of WMRJ (White Men for Racial Justice):
Billy Linstead Goldsmith
Brian Hanlon
Darren Sudman
Drew Bonfiglio
Eric Mayer
Jay Coen Gilbert
Kevin Eppler
Peter Burns
Jay Coen Gilbert is the co-founder of B Lab, IMPERATIVE 21, and White Men for Racial Justice.
The Citizen welcomes guest commentary from community members who represent that it is their own work and their own opinion based on true facts that they know firsthand.
