Thank you, Dr. Rice
10
Susan Rice and her family embodies "yes we can".
11
We are a long way from being a post-racial society. The blatant rfacism of Trump & many of his supporters proved that.
7
No doubt you've done your parents proud.
9
Lois Rice, daughter of Jamaican immigrants, was known as the Mother of the Pell Grant. She was an advocate for education and a force to behold. Emmett was a Governor of the Federal Reserve and a patriot, among much else. Their daughter's distinguished career pleased them both, I'm certain. But I bet it didn't surprise them. It certainly stands in answer and rebuke to the current gang of racist thugs in DC.
23
The values and aspirations passed on to Susan Rice by her parents are very similar to those of first generation Jewish Americans. Despite quotas, red lining, employment and social discrimination, Jewish Americans today are ranked among the most educated and prosperous religious groups in this country. Anti-Semitism, like racism, is still evident in this country, but adhering to the values of education and achievement will always defeat these hateful attitudes held by some Americans.
14
Emmett Rice is an American hero. He should never have had to “prove” himself to America. He IS America...at its best.
10
I am ordering her memoir now.
5
How is our nation so messed up that we have Trump and McConnell leading us instead of Rice and women like her?
27
What great good-fortune to have had your parents as your parents. How proud of them you must be. How proud of you they most certainly must have been (and as I am).
6
Well-written Ms. Rice, would be great if everyone lived such a life of self-determination coupled with the backbone to deal with the racist haters who define themselves far more than the subjects of their prejudice.
4
Wow! Wish every American would read this!
5
While I read this some days ago and posted my appreciation for such an uplifting article, I just saw her interview on Rachel Maddow and was so impressed by her straightforward and hopeful outlook on our current situation. I’m looking forward to the release of her book (Tough Love) on Tuesday. Hey, Susan! Wanna run for office? I’d vote for ya! We need someone with compassion, common sense, and understands propriety in public office. Think about it, yes?
18
I have always admired Susan Rice. Her parents were great examples of living life to its fullest. I have raised 6 children who have an Italian American Mother and an Indian father. Growing up in Texas has presented some obstacles for them but we always encouraged them to do their best! Go after what you want. The cream always comes to the top. As Susan Rice’s father told his daughter to be the best you can be his words ring true for me. Cant wait to read her memoir.
8
I have always admired Susan Rice for the principles she always stood for. Now I know where they came from and why she has such a strong personality.
8
Great article. As an African in the US, I find that this article reflects exactly how I interact with race as well. I recognize there is discrimination but choose to strive for success in spite of it. Moreover, I also recognize, as Susan's dad did, that America is an exceptional country and the only place where I can aspire to achieve almost unfathomable dreams in the land of my birth. Thank you for sharing Susan.
11
What a good man Ms. Rice's father was: patriot, hero, stalwart, realist. Same for the mother. No wonder their daughter turned out to be a bright, hard-working, dedicated, honest, brilliant woman.
POTUS, perhaps? Now THERE'S a candidate!
9
@William Fordes The Benghaza nothing burger will doom her chances. Republicans are good at messaging albeit, mostly lies.
I wish I had had Susan's parents. I would be a better person today.
50
Ms. Rice, I thoroughly enjoyed this inspired piece about your dad.
It is clear you are very proud of him and I am certain that your father was very proud of your outstanding accomplishments as well.
7
What a strong and loving foundation you received. Thanks very much for this essay. It gives me inspiration to keep trying to do the same for myself and my child, ie. teach by example. Plus my intention is to, always, do right by all humans. Our history pains me, and it's not just our history; ill-treatment/discrimination continues into the present as well. It's wrong.
7
thank you for writing.... we need more of this!
2
Ms. Rice don't be so bitter about what happened to your father when he was served in the U.S. Army in WWII. My older brother was drafted by the U.S. Army in 1943 and he was sent to Pacific to fight the Japanese. He was honorable discharged in California in 1946. After the war he returned to his native country and got married and when he tried to bring his wife back to the U.S, Because the U.S. Embassy told him that he was cheating and not a citizen of the U.S. So I went to talk to the ambassador and he was nice and asked the vice-consular to retrieve his military records from a military office in Washington, D.C. Two weeks later they approved his reentry back to the U.S. He died in 2002 and his family requested a spot for him in the Arlington National Cemetery and again they refused their request so his wife paid a small plot for him in a private cemetery on Lee Highway, Northern Virginia. When he was trying to find job as a laundry clerk at the U.S. Navy Academy in Annapolis and they denied to hire him and finally he was hired by Macy as a janitor until he passed away.This is the truth about American equality and civil rights. Ms. Rice don't feel too bad about you father situation. America is a dominated by white Americans. Other ethnic groups should take a back seat. I am so lucky to have a low-paid job and retired 15 years ago and enjoy my life with my low monthly pensions.
4
@Roadrunner: Platitudes are not the answer to society's problems or to relations between African Americans and poor whites. Concrete action is the answer , whether it applies to someone who bemoans the plethora of stray, starving animals or people living in "la misere."here in the US or outside our borders. Wrote in a previous submission about finding a limping ,homeless dog on an Indian pueblo outside of Santa Fe in 1991 whom I took to a local vet who amputated her injured leg and long story into short,drove dog to airport in Albuquerque, put her on a Delta flight to LAG and Estrella remained with us for almost a dozen yrs until she passed away. Story written up in Daily News:"A Case of Puppy Love,"Aug. 1991.Many ngo's whom I worked with in west Africa sponsored families for green cards and in my case, Juliana from Ghana who immigrated to US thinks this is a great country. Thus, if u want to contribute to the commonweal in a material fashion, you can do so and should perhaps do so:Light a candle in the darkness.
3
For every patriotic and high-achieving person of color, there are many others who simply try to get over, as Curtis Mayfield sang so perceptively. We need to depart from exceptionalist viewpoints based on superficial racial traits and consider each individual on their own merit, not as a part of a statistical aggregate to fulifil a racial quota. That has been the legacy of Title VII since 1965 and it's now perceived as a massive failure. Not to mention the inescapable reality of people marrying other people on the basis of love and not concerning themselves with bygone taboos...
5
I am glad that your father got to realize his potential at two of the finest universities in this country, U Cal Berkeley and Harvard, despite the unfair barriers he faced elsewhere.
5
My father also served in World War Two. He believed this country to have an imperfect system but the best there was. Your father also was a great man. Unfortunately I feel both were wrong. This country is far worse than imperfect. You have fought the good fight as did President Obama, as did your father and mother and many more. I would never diminish or dismiss that. However, I think there might have been given to many of your generation a possible nievete regarding the deeply entrenched racism perpetuated by what what was called and is still recognized around the word as “The Ugly American”. I have seen these Americans everywhere around the world I have traveled. They are white and they stick out like a sore thumb. They are loud, disrespectful of others, arrogant and abusive. After over a half century of the fight for civil rights in this country there is still no integrated community or neighborhood in this country. Wealth is monopolized by white Americans and the political, economic and governmental apparatus is being used to consolidate this. I have no solution, just an observation. Not a universal one just one specific to the United States. It is not a reality I like living.
3
What I like best about Mr. Rice senior, among many excellent qualities, is that he never got caught up in the patriotic military jingoism that is one of the many sins of Americans and even some blacks. He apparently understood the military for what it was.
5
What would Ms. Rice think of HER Republican Party today? Seems it would not to be to her liking. Her silence is deafening.
1
@Robert Black Wrong Ms. Rice. I believe you thinking of Condoleezza Rice who served under GWB. The author of this piece is Susan Rice who served under Obama.
8
You are confusing Condoleezza Rice with the author Susan Rice who is a Democrat.
3
“we cannot allow ourselves to be defined or bound by race.” Susan, your Dad’s words will remain with me always as an American ideal to live up to.
35
Beautiful....
Throughout my life I've believed that criticisms reflect on the critic more than on the one critiqued. And that the need to demean and criticize is pathological.
As a teacher, my charge as a leader and a model was to elevate.
Those who cheer vileness, and the 'leaders' who spew it, are little more than pathetic.
"Better Together".... Amen....
2
Honest. Inspiring. Real history. How to be a good parent and citizen of the world. Thank you Susan Rice.
1
This is great advice: do NOT regard yourself as a minority (e.g. black, Asian). After all, you can't see your own face; only others can see you that way. If you have to work twice as hard to be considered half as good as a white man, well, do it.
But what about those of us who have average talent and dedication? What is the author's advice for them?
1
Susan Rice is a class act. High on the list of vice presidential candidates?
1
You can't carry the burden of the world, but you also can't deny that reality exists. It does. It will. It's going to. No matter who you are and what you do. Reality exists.
Then you go right on doing what you do.
3
While I was admittedly uncomfortable with the phrase "God-given potential," I am so glad that I read this article and agree with everything Susan E. Rice said. It is self-defeating to constrain your potential based upon other people's beliefs and efforts to hold you back. What is a bit inconsistent, in my opinion, is stating that her "father’s life was a mission to prove America wrong about race," while also stating that black people "don’t have to prove anything to anyone but yourself." By not allowing other people's beliefs and efforts constrain his potential, he was challenging other people's beliefs. And, this is also why it's important for LGBTQ people to be open about their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. After all, how do LGBTQ people challenge other people's biases and prove them wrong about LGBTQ people if such LGBTQ people are closeted? They can't. To me, this article is about challenging people's biases.
A great article. I agree with the view that it is critical to go beyond the perspective of being a victim, and that all white / other / men are evil.
Secondly, many thousands of people in the world, in the US, have struggled and sacrificed to end slavery and racism.
Thirdly, much of racism stems from poverty and ignorance. So the source of the evil isn't an inherent characteristic, it's the consequence of poverty and a lack of education.
Next, the source of slavery throughout history has been the domination and power mad efforts of a few people, often the wealthy elite, who run economies, societies, the military. In the South leading up to the Civil War, a few wealthy white men owned the majority of the slaves and spun the reality of slavery into "states rights" for their selfish and cruel choices. Relatively few people in the South owned slaves, but their were swept up and pushed into supporting the local "power" leadership who grew wealthy on evil.
Finally, the transformation from what the USA was during WWII regarding racism and now is radical. People should know the past, but we don't live there now.
1
She came from relative privilege, better off than most people, and has accomplished greatness, but her being black does not put her on the same footing as someone who's parents were janitors or factory workers, black or white. Class and social status means more in this society. What done about hierarchy?
5
Susan, I rarely agree with any of your policy Op-Eds, but this piece was an unexpected surprise. An inspiring and beautiful story. This is the "stuff" you should be writing more about! Have a great weekend.
1%'ers talking about struggle is laughable. Susan Rice's life was and is one of privilege. Net worth 60 million. Let's save this discussion for people who have actually had to face the "struggle". It's real.
3
She was writing about her father's struggles not her own.
4
So are you saying the color of her skin has had no impact on her life? We’re talking about the USA, right?
4
I love Susan Rice and I'm white, male and 71 and living in Suburban St. Louis and working to help the thousands of black children in our community who are born into poverty and are faced every day with systemic walls built over centuries to keep them from their potential. Susan faced different sets of barriers and was raised by parents who were exceptional people and who provided her with opportunities to build upon. I wish she was president of the United States and could help turn the tide of race-based poverty that inflicts and limits our society.
10
Ambassador Rice illustrates of one of the clearest differences between Democrats and Republicans. Democrats seek out competence and expertise to fill important roles. Republicans, in contrast, sacrifice competence for ideological purity. So we got Trump, Perry, Palin, W Bush, Quayle, DeVos, McCarthy, a slew of embarrassingly unqualified judicial nominations and dozens more.
GOP donors aren’t interested in buying smart people. Just people who do what they’re told.
While conservatism is about preserving the status quo, liberalism tackles the inherently more difficult objective of finding novel ways to advance the human condition. The founders were liberals. Abraham Lincoln was a liberal. TDR and FDR were liberals. John and Robert Kennedy, were liberals. This takes vision, intelligence and education.
Barack Obama is a liberal, as were members of his presidential cabinet and political cohort. Clinton, Power, Geithner, Gates, Castro – these are just a few of the people who brought competence, experience, intellect and education to their roles.
Rice, a graduate of Stanford and Oxford universities, who served as national security advisor, assistant secretary of state, and ambassador to the United Nations was among the best. So of course, when she was nominated for Secretary of State, the GOP torpedoed her nomination, because god forbid a person of such talent should serve the United States if she’s a liberal.
15
Thank you for taking the time to write and share this wonderful and inspiring piece. So many lessons for all of us!
6
Susan E. Rice, your father had the right idea and he deserves high praise for holding that idea and expressing it.
But now, in 2019, even though genome research has confirmed what many of us long ago had good reason to believe, that America has always been wrong about "race", America remains firmly committed to putting in boxes carrying names given them by racists long ago.
There is only one race, the human.
The American groups designated as races (no clear distinction is made by the Census Bureatu between race and ethinicity) are, to use Professor Dorothy Robert's brilliant designation, the FATAL INVENTIONS of racists.
Each "race" was a political invention often to make it easier to pick people to keep out, later sometimes to pick people to provide some kind of support for.
Clearly in a time when we have a National Racist as president there is little chance that the Congress or the Census Bureau can do as its former Director, Kenneth Prewitt, recommended - end classification by race.
But the Times should at least began a conversation about doing that - unlearning race and ending classification by race.
Only-NeverInSweden.blogspot.com
Citizen US SE
5
As a white man 13 years older than Ms Rice, I remember the Civil Right era well. Though NJ had more opportunities for African Americans, it also had private rules that kept blacks out of white neighborhoods etc. People my age are now senior citizens, but we all remember well the way it was.
It is astonishing just how diligent and self disciplined men like Rice's father must have been to survive the prejudices of the time. I still remember "serious people" asking if blacks were being impatient in asking for their rights. Yet Ms Rice was raised to believe in America's ultimate good, despite the flaws.
On the other hand, rich kid Donald Trump who grew up when I did feels no good will toward Americans despite having so many advantages.
14
This article is familiar family narrative. My dad grew up in segregated NC, the son of slave. He went to undergraduate at Johnson C Smith and was studying to be a chemist. He was fluent in German and French which was required to study science. He was drafted into the army and sent to France the week after Normandy Beach. He stayed on the front until a year after the war ended. He was used as an interpreter to interrogate German prisoners and French citizens on the front. When he returned to the US he completed a PhD in chemistry at Indiana University.Though he was thought of as a top flight organic chemist, he was offered a job at Dow Chemical Company in WV to work in the labs only at night when the white chemist were not there. They offered him a promotion if he would move to Venezuela. Instead he moved the family to segregated Jackson MS in 1957 to teach at JSU. He was moved by the murder of Emmett Till and his WW II military experience to rush into where the fire was hottest because that was the only way to prevent it from consuming everything. He taught us to never use race as an excuse for not reaching our goals in life and that the only person with whom we needed to compete was the person in the mirror. He taught chemistry at JSU until his death opening doors for hundreds of Black kids that were never open to him while teaching them the same lessons about personal excellence, never accepting race as a reason for failure and going to where the fire is hottest
16
@carlton brown That strong, amazing person in the mirror was formidable competition indeed for your father. You have reason to be very proud.
3
Emmett Rice was as fine an example of what a person should strive to be as I can think of. Of particular inspiration to me is how he defied the prejudice of low expectations.
6
I'll share this piece with my family tonight. Thanks so much for its power and insight.
4
Very inspiring! I look forward to your book.
3
Susan Rice's father was a giant forced to live among small men, and that he had the courage and stamina to persevere even after absorbing so many insults is a testament to his strength of character.
In 2019 he would still meet with resistance from many White people, including President Trump who would disparage him for no reason other than his race.
Ms. Rice was fortunate to have had such a stellar example growing up.
11
A remarkable man - and daughter.
12
Two stellar admirable parents.
A stellar daughter.
When will we see skin color as no more than eye or hair color?
11
Ms. Rice is a fine person who comes from a wonderful family.
There was some talk she would run for the US Senate in Maine with the hope of replacing Susan Collins. I hope she runs.
10
This is a positive and frank op ed. We need essays like this now at this time in our history and our politics. And great photos, too of you and your father! Thank you.
9
The story was about her father. Yes, his courage and patriotism paved the way for his daughter to “never doubt her own abilities” and, I presume, her misguided views and policies. But the article was about her dad.
1
And her father should never have had to “prove” himself to America. He IS America.
1
My aunt knew you. She was a professor at a university close to you. She spoke very highly of you. And she taught me a lesson that is very similar to this essay: work harder than anyone else. Do your homework. Love others. Be present.
Being black is a privilege - we get to see humanity as it really is.
15
This is a terrific exemplifier of a person who focused on being known by the quality of His character and not the colour of His skin.
Many of us still long for that world, but if our nations can't achieve that yet, we will look to the individuals who refuse to be dehumanized by derisive views of their family backgrounds, and who believe in their innate and infinite value and who therefore live in a way that teaches us to view ourselves and others in the same beautiful light.
5
A lovely unmasking of your father. Thank you.
6
Your parents taught you well, and I'm sure your father (and mother) were enormously proud of you and your achievements. Thank you for this article, for your outstanding civil service, and for the lovely and warm articulation of values in this article. I hope you will be among the many who will help rebuild the institutions and values that have been core and essential to our nation for centuries, once we emerge from the current nightmare.
6
I was very fortunate to meet Emmett Rice in India when he was one of the first Fulbright students in 1952 and have the most pleasant memories of time spent together whenever he and /or Andy Brimmer came to Delhi We met at Constitution House where I lived and worked for USIS on a contract.
I also met Susan Rice in Aspen at a dinner when she was working for the State Dept. and mentioned that I knew her father.
13
What an inspiring story. How many great people were held back from this kind of success because of racism and prejudice? My white parents, both WWII veterans were able to buy a home and build family wealth with a GI mortgage rate of 1%. How much wealth was denied to black veterans because they were not allowed to purchase homes in white only developments? How many black farmers lost farms because of lack of access to credit that should have been available to them?
24
Eloquently stated and compellingly expressed, Susan Rice convincingly conveys the hard cold realities Black Americans of our parents, and grandparents, generations, experienced. Accomplishing significant plateaus based upon her merit, she tragically notes that in America, race is, and always will, be a constant factor. The sacrifices of those generations contributed significantly to according opportunities for their children. Remembering who you are and where you came from is compulsory in the life experience of Black America. And, irregardless of the degree of achievement, race will always be, and remain, an issue. To quote William Shakespeare: "to thine own self be true." Race matters.
10
Ms. Rice,
Thank you for this. I wish there was an article every day like yours. We need constant examples of who we aspire to be, and who some of us are, as Americans and as a country. Your article revived the dimming ember of hope for our country in my heart. If only more Amercians were like you. Thank you.
15
God bless your dad. It would have been a proud moment to have met him and all the airmen he served with, true Americans and heroes. You encapsulate in your piece the worth, determination and moral compass that has guided you from what he taught you and your brother.
And I bet he was also just a nice man. He looks that way in the photo of you and him in British Columbia.
8
I am astonished that so many Americans, native-born and immigrant alike, respond to discrimination on the part of their fellow citizens not with hatred for this country but with a simple determination to succeed in life. Ms. Rice's parents taught their children to remain true to themselves rather than to jump through the hoops designed by their critics. That strikes me as a valuable life lesson for anyone, regardless of what challenges he or she faces.
The experience of Ms. Rice and her family should remind us that the deep strain of racism which distorts the American character does not entirely define us as a people. The profound ideals of equality and individual freedom embedded in the Declaration of Independence struggle with that darker impulse for dominance. Trump and his minions represent one potential outcome of that internal conflict, but the Rices embody a more hopeful one.
8
@James Lee I've always felt that people like Ms. Rice's father or Senator Inouye were motivated not by what we were (and in many cases still are) but by what we could be. The true power of America is the power to inspire, the power to give hope; not to be the bully, the blusterer or the con man.
6
As an immigrant kid growing up in the post segregation South, my exposure to African Americans was through my father's colleagues at an HBCU. They were professors, college presidents, deacons, coaches and administrators. It was not until I ventured out of that bubble did I come to realize to what extent recent immigrants imbibe and mimic the prevalent racial attitudes of America. It's unfortunate but it has given me an opportunity to question these attitudes and to educate members of my own community. Dr. Rice's father looks so much like many of my father's friends and colleagues who graced our dinner table. They are the true patriots who have time and again forced America to live fully up to its promise. The fact that they have done that with such grace and patience is truly unprecedented in history. We are indebted to them forever.
14
Very moving article- you stand as a role model for all of us!!
4
As a white cancer surgeon, I know that inside, we all look alike. And unfortunately cancer is an unprejudiced disease that afflicts us all in equal measure, regardless of the melanin content in our skin. Having said that, the waste that racism and other prejudices has imposed on us as individuals and our society, writ large, leaves me wondering how we as a people and nation have even been able to come to where we are. Can't we simply see each other as fellow human beings, traveling much faster through life than almost any of us might want, and reach out to say "Hello" and help each other along this tenuous path?
25
Your parents guidance will serve all young people well, no matter their race, or gender.
109
@Neil Robinson
Well said. I was all set to write a similar comment but you beat me to the punch.
3
Thank you for sharing that. Remarkable parents!
4
As someone who grew up in South Florida in the 50's and 60's, I recall vividly what a spectacle segregation was. Anybody who thinks that racism has since disappeared is either disingenuous or dumb -- or just a white nationalist. I see quite a lot of comments here that suggest a combination of at least two out of these three is sadly possible.
105
@KBD
I grew up at the same time in Minnesota, mostly in a suburb of St. Paul, with very little exposure to other than white people. My world changed with college life in a dorm that was 50% white/50% black. I learned to trust my instincts to approach others as individuals with a complex array of traits, experiences, desires and tastes that in their entirety defy generalization. I am well aware of my white privilege, but feel no guilt, rather a responsibility to try to recognize others' realities and to take the first step toward engagement when appropriate. This attitude served me well and opened the door to many positive personal and professional relationships in my career as an inner city educator. I have spent the past 6 years retired in SW Florida and can confirm that it still is the South. I find the Republican white complacency (never expanding medicaid under ACA, for example, despite the 80,000 middle class jobs that would have created) maintains a very hostile environment for the non wealthy. I am moving north of the Mason Dixon line asap.
27
@KBD You need to get out more. To me you are still living in the 50s and 60s. The only people stirring race divide in my opinion is the politicians. In the US I live in most of us go about our every day lives working and interacting with one another without thinking anything about the person we are next to’s race. When I read comment like yours I wonder what in the world are you talking about?
This is a wonderful, inspiring essay.
Based on the low volume of comments made thus far, it would seem that a below-average number of NY Times digital subscribers are reading it.
If my inference is even partially valid, that's a shame.
Every single Times reader should - needs to - read it. And then share it with all of her or his friends and acquaintances.
15
Beautiful and brilliant, the "Good Rice" as I call her is a beacon of hope for black people. The "Bad Rice" never reached out to us; it wouldn't have been 'professional.' I miss the Obama years...terribly!
3
Moved by this essay, envious of the support you received throughout your life.
Stupidly I believed a negative comment made about you (unnamed forever, but later realized that person met the criteria for a congenital liar). Your essays this century showed me a truer version. Once told a black woman that I knew you, that you were strong, fierce, not likeable (her smile stopped there), perfect to be Secretary of State, even President (her smile returned). Back to me, no support like yours, but in the late 90s ran into Clyde Nora who beamed as he told me he hadn’t realized how great a job I’d done until I’d left our embassy a decade earlier in Lomé, Togo. I treasure his words as much as you treasure those you received.
3
My mother's first cousin, Colonel Charles E. McGee, is a Tuskegee Airman who will turn 100 on December 7! He and your father must have known each other, and he exemplifies the same qualities that you extol in your lovely piece. However, I hope that the readers who are congratulating your story understand that most African-Americans were not lucky enough to be born into circumstances that provided the opportunities and capabilities to take advantage of them that your parents experienced. My own upbringing was very similar, but I have never lost the awareness that even most of the characteristics that enabled me to persevere and achieve in the face of blatant racism and sexism were gifts that I acquired simply as a matter of my birth and not necessarily "earned."
152
Scanning down the front page of the NYT this morning, this piece caught my eye. I needed a break from the otherwise depressing news. I have always admired Susan Rice. I believe she was confirmed as our UN Ambassador by unanimous consent in the Senate. Remember those days? When decent smart qualified people could sail through the nomination process with bipartisan acclaim? Her list of achievements is deep and long, culminating with being named National Security Advisor for Obama.
Ms. Rice is a gifted writer. This marvelous essay filled me with emotion. So many insights, themes, searing personal narratives, and examples of family cohesion, truth, honesty, talent and hope. Her father’s story is such a deep dive into the reality of America in the WWII and post-war era. It evokes similar emotions as the movie Mudbound, which garnered four Oscar nominations and made me weep.
I anticipate other commenters arguing that it is unrealistic for people to free themselves of the burden of prejudice and discrimination by simply removing it from their own psyche and placing “the problem” on those who are purveyors of it. That response to this piece kind of misses the point. Every family, every person facing these challenges must choose a game plan, hone it and persevere. And everyone who succeeds has a story to tell, and every story matters.
277
Excellent piece. My Dad went to Dunbar then Howard. I knew of Mr. Emmett Rice and for some reason never associated him with you Susan Rice and your incredible accomplishments. I majored in Econ because of him and his role at the Fed and continue to work in this area. My Dad was born in Rock Hill, SC and held many of the same views as your Dad and was credited with being the Institutional Memory by DOD for many of the standards used by how our nuclear weapons are managed today. Yes you have to be "best" but also understand how to circumnavigate the bigotry of others.
246
@Pamela Just wanted to let you know that I also majored in Economics and that my dad (and mom) ALSO went to Dunbar and Howard!!! In addition, and this is really uncanny, my paternal ancestors migrated from Rock Hill, SC around the turn of the 20th century to Washington, D.C. It seems that, ultimately, a lot of us are all connected! I agree with the rest of your comments about Mr. Rice, Ms. Susan Rice and this essay. I look forward to reading her memoir. My paternal family's name: Crockett.
19
Wow, you had two wonderful parents Ms. Rice. Thank you for sharing their stories and yours with all of us. It's better to be held to high standards by one's parents (assuming that they are realistic about oneself) than to be excused because of one's color, gender, etc. Then, no matter what we accomplish we know that we've tried and not failed because of our own self imposed stereotypes. That implies a supportive environment in childhood, one where a child's normal curiosity is rewarded, and one where academic excellence is expected (not the straight A sort but the honest hard work sort). That's how we can measure the worth of a person's life: did s/he work hard, have integrity, and try to do the right things as much as possible? It's not all about money.
8
So tough to read, yet so touching. Outstanding parents for showing the way and knowing bitterness from racism, but teaching other ways to get even. Get ahead. Thank you, Susan Rice.
69
I admire Rice father and daughter, but what she wrote here is equivalent to "if you work hard, you will succeed" or "if you try hard enough, you can become anything you want". These are of course not true in real life. These "encouragements", instead, would make people who try hard, work hard but because of bad luck or discrimination not succeeding in life look like they are lazy and not try hard enough. And that often is the excuse to discriminate. What I want to read is articles that tell us why, when one works hard but still can not succeed in life. Either white or black, there are only a small percentage who would have the mental toughness and work extra hard like the Rice father and daughter. The majority of people, black or white, are just ordinary people whose fate is often determined by factors other than how they conduct themselves.
8
"He traveled the world extensively and recognized the exceptional nature of America, its democracy, its values and its institutions. He knew that only in America could he have reached the highest levels of his field and served at the pinnacles of government. Only in America could he raise his black children to believe that we faced no insurmountable hurdles to our success."
I think that I see this in a different perspective than do most Americans. And I see the kind of thinking which makes Americans so distasteful to the rest of the world. My eyes settle on the phrase "the exceptional nature of America."
Then I see "Only in America ... " And then everything else ceases to matter. Only in America? But not in Canada, or the U.K. or France or ... well a whole bunch of other places. Are they not exceptional? Did not people of colour -- some of them my ancestors -- seek and receive freedom from the King of England while the American government sought to return them to their owners? There is less opportunity for people of colour in those nations than in the United States? What evidence is there for that? What could possibly lead one to such a conclusion? A visit to any American city -- and then a comparison to Toronto of Vancouver or Montreal -- blows that premise entirely out of the water. It is frankly -- and as are so many other questionable premises which go unquestioned by Americans -- insulting.
Good thing we're used to it.
12
@curious
Dear Curious
In my humble opinion, Dr Rice's comment about "the exceptional nature of America" also has to placed in a certain period of time context.
At the time when his career took him all over the world in a professional capacity it was probably true that compared to other countries (especially Western industrialized nations) if you ran across another person of African descent ( who was not from an African country) the chances were high that he/she was also American. That was not,of course, always the case but it was probably true in a disproportionate manner.
I am an African-American man (and proud Southerner) born and reared in Georgia. His experience in that manner is similar to mine even though I am three decades or so younger. Of course Canada,UK France et al have talented ethnic minorities that have achieved high degrees of success, but I do believe in the US it came sooner and more broad based ( for a variety of reasons some "exceptional" some not so) and a visit to Vancouver, Toronto or Montreal NOW would change the fact that THEN his observations are probably more true than not.
My personal professional journey in the military, business and diplomatic arenas required me to live over 15 years in Europe Middle East Latin America and Asia( I am currently posted in Thailand) and to a certain extent his observations are still somewhat true but on a more muted basis (in fact one of my colleagues is an Afro-Canadian)
4
@curious
Dear Curious
In my humble opinion, Dr Rice's comment about "the exceptional nature of America" also has to placed in a certain period of time context.
At the time when his career took him all over the world in a professional capacity it was probably true that compared to other countries (especially Western industrialized nations) if you ran across another person of African descent ( who was not from an African country) the chances were high that he/she was also American. That was not,of course, always the case but it was probably true in a disproportionate manner.
I am an African-American man (and proud Southerner) born and reared in Georgia. His experience in that manner is similar to mine even though I am three decades or so younger. Of course Canada,UK France et al have talented ethnic minorities that have achieved high degrees of success, but I do believe in the US it came sooner and more broad based ( for a variety of reasons some "exceptional" some not so) and a visit to Vancouver, Toronto or Montreal NOW would change the fact that THEN his observations are probably more true than not.
My personal professional journey in the military, business and diplomatic arenas required me to live over 15 years in Europe Middle East Latin America and Asia( I am currently posted in Thailand) and to a certain extent his observations are still somewhat true but on a more muted basis (in fact one of my colleagues is an Afro-Canadian)
@curious
Sorry curious
I meant to say that a visit to those wonderful Canadians cities NOW would NOT change the fact that Dr Rice's observations were probably more true than not THEN.
In any case, I do not think his comments are meant to be slight to our great neighbours to the North!
1
Thank you for this and all of your work. I was proud to be an American when you served our last President so brilliantly. I wish your father could have lived to see you one day lead the country as well from the Oval office. You'd be a great president we could all be proud of again.
7
Excellent essay. Reminds us that serving in the military is a sort of holy occupation, in that it recreates lives, cannon fodder of all ethnicities thrown together into the melting pot. Equal at last: while spreading the empire.
2
Bravo Ambassador Rice! I look forward to reading your memoir. I hope you continue to speak out as you did so eloquently this morning on CBS on the existential threats are country is now facing. You are indeed a shining light, please continue to shine for all the American values we need to hold so dear in these dark times.
7
Susan, leave our fathers out of it.
These times are on you and me.
An example, My Newfoundland Father when his Father became injured on work and bills needed to be taken in.
My Dad, being the muscle hired a lawyer.
Between the two of them got the money owed. All proper.
My grandfather would not accept the money. Why?
The lawyer was Catholic.
We have to get past the stupidity of those times Susan.
Keep writing Susan E. Rice, one of the more clear writers in these Trump confusing times.
6
No wonder Susan Rice is brilliant; her parents were brilliant.
As a white American man, it's my moral duty to recognize the historical injustices perpetuated on non-whites going back 400 years to Jamestown, Virginia.
Of course I wasn't there, and neither were my ancestors, but so what.
America is an idea, that all humans are created equal and deserve equal dignity and respect.
The long, ugly record of American white supremacy and the general white obliviousness and insensitivity to America's historical mistreatment is a continuing massive insult to injury.
The idea that a single Confederate statue or Confederate flag stands or flies in a public square is an American cultural obscenity just as Confederate bumper stickers are.
The obnoxious clueless claim that 'racism is over' is an insult to reality given the historical and recent devastation to non-white communities by their disparate punishment by the police-prosecutor-prison-industrial-complex...ultimately for the 'crime' of poverty caused by systematic financial, legal and socioeconomic segregation designed, legislated, owned and operated by whites.
The solution is truth and reconciliation, including an ongoing public apology to blacks, Latinos, Native Americans and other abused communities from the nation's white beneficiaries like myself who have benefited from a system that was designed to make life exceedingly difficult for nonwhites while giving whites extra slack at all times.
A little white humility, please.
172
@Socrates As a non-white immigrant I can say it's the false sense of guilt from people like you that is the problem.
13
@Socrates - scathing, heartening and brilliant - among your very best comments.
15
@Socrates
I can only hope that Justice Clarence Thomas reads this column as well as Socrates’ comment. His judicial philosophy has been tainted by a deep seated inferiority complex that can only be satiated by denying the fact that ethnic minorities may need additional governmental help in leveling the playing field to succeed in this society.
15
I think every minority has to figure out how they choose to live in a world that is prioritizes and rewards Whiteness, maleness, heterosexuality, being wealthy, and being Christian.
I am a fan of Susan Rice and this is a great story BUT it ignores the systemic nature of racism in the US which has been meticulously documented by social scientists like myself and others. Individual efforts might results in a few Blacks being successful but it will never ameliorate conditions for the multitude of Blacks given the way institutional racism works.
My parents were the anti-thesis of Susan's. They were products of the Great Migration and spoke continuously about racism and the way it works. I was "woke" as a child and always knew what I was looking at. As early as high school, I called out racist policies, racist teachers and the racist curriculum to change institutions not individuals. I am still doing that as an academic with my research, classes and service. I make a lot of White people uncomfortable talking about racism and its' various manifestations, and I don't care. I have also encouraged a lot of White people to learn about racism, reflect on White privilege and work to eradicate racism.
31
@professor Please keep talking Professor. I appreciate the black people in my life who discuss these things with me. Otherwise, I am a product of my white world and ignorant of the experiences of other people.
5
Unfortunately, your conservative Republican son is helping undo the legacies you and your father and other progressive Americans have fought for. Please have him read this too. Thanks.
6
Thank you, thank you, thank you! My granddaughter just celebrated her first birthday. I will ensure her parents absorb the heart of this essay.
4
A beautiful piece. Thanks
5
Given that her father received his Ph.D. at Berkeley, Susan chose to go to Stanford? Did she learn anything from her father?
Apart from this unforgivable sin, Susan E. Rice brings a deep understanding of race and achievement in American society. For those racial minorities who were part of the "Greatest Generation," the American military served as both the cruelest institution of racism and discrimination and the most important institution for economic and educational mobility. In addition to African Americans, this was especially true for Japanese Americans who were forcibly removed into military-run internment camps under the guise of "military necessity." Yet the second-generation Nisei would serve in the U.S. Army as the most decorated fighting unit (442nd Regimental Combat Unit) even as their family members languished in prison camps. These young men would use the GI Bill (as I imagine Emmett Rice did) to obtain higher education and become the first significant professional class of Asian Americans. It's easy to be patriotic when all you have to do is don a red cap and scream slogans. It's much more meaningful when you fully experience multiple dimensions of this complicated and vexing nation.
12
@UC Graduate
FYI - Ira Katznelson has written about how the GI Bill did little for Black soldiers. Many Black soldiers returned to the South so their benefits were often blocked by racist administrators of the program. These are among many reasons Katznelson says the GI Bill did not serve African American veterans of WWII as well as it did White veterans.
2
I have often wondered how the arc of history in America may have been altered if the US airline industry had had the guts in the late 1940s thru the 1950s to hire many of those qualified Tuskeegee Airman as pilots and flight engineers. Maybe other industries (IBM, HP, J&J, to name just a few) would have followed suit and realized that they were letting a valuable resource (technical and managerial know-how) slip away. We'll never know the answer to this question, but Dr. Rice's article makes me think about the cost of lost opportunity that we are still paying the price for.
9
Democrats always produce better people in government positions. They typically have character and integrity. They also have a much better sense of human dignity, and a grasp of public policy that includes that as sacrosanct. This is a nice article by Susan Rice.
6
Quote: "What was it, I have often wondered, about those Tuskegee Airmen and support personnel that seemingly enabled them to become a vanguard of black achievement? Perhaps the military preselected unusually well-educated and capable men for Tuskegee, or some aspect of their service experience propelled them as a group to succeed."
I'm assuming the answer is both. The Tuskegee airmen were absolutely the best of the best. For a white college-educated guy with a pilot license, there were countless squadrons in the Air Force that needed to be filled that he could volunteer to serve in. For a similarly inspired young black pilot, there was only ONE such squadron (later, a wing) - the Tuskegee "Red Tails". The competition was extremely tough, so in the end the unit was comprised of absolutely the best educated, most athletic and competent African-American pilots from the entire country.
There are many excellent books written about the Tuskegee Airmen. One I highly recommend is "Red Tails : An Oral History of the Tuskegee Airmen" - it is a collection of interviews with the surviving pilots where they describe in their own words their experiences and the obstacles they had to overcome and, frankly, horrifying instances of mistreatment they had to suffer in the process.
5
Dear Ms. Rice,
Thank you for sharing your beautiful story of your Dad and Mom. You have been blessed by having wonderful parents. God bless you and thank you for your service to this country.
9
Susan, thank you for these words. I appreciate hearing/reading the life stories of blacks who lived through Jim Crow, which was not restricted to the South, and how families attempted to persevere and thrive in the face of anti-black terrorism. I agree completely we should not forget our ancestors, distant and near, and black people must all stand together as a family for our continued survival.
4
Someone else wanted to prove America was wrong about race. When the Tuskeegee Airmen went into the European Theater, they were given the great P-51 to fly. And fly it they did! Those were remarkable men who could have done the Allies a lot of good if they had been in service earlier in the war.
If the Army Air Corps (later the AAF) had wanted black pilots, they would have trained them earlier on. It's commander, Hap Arnold, was pretty good at getting what he wanted. Someone convinced him he wanted black fliers. Could that someone have been Eleanor Roosevelt?
6
Based on the comments, it seems that Susan Rice can't win. She's damned if she does and damned if she doesn't.
There is so much resentment against her because her opinions don't conform to a stereotype.
Unfortunately, many commentators here have opinions that are cut from a rigid template.
5
America is such a contrast of extremes - it's mind boggling.
In Canada, we are still trying everyday to reconcile with all our First Nations - on ongoing process - but still woefully inadequate and falling short of success.
In our case - the legacy is of Europeans coming in and destroying an ancient way of life.
In your case, African American ancestors were captured and brought to America in bondage.
America is still dealing with the aftermath, including still reconstructing from the civil war.
In Canada - we still have First Nations people living in horrible housing up north and elsewhere - discrimination still exists.
Ms. Rice keeps going back to her father's raw anger of the treatment of African Americans is notable, considering his service to the country and the heights of his professional life.
I think things are better that they were - for both countries - and getting better - it just takes too long.
4
This is the exact opposite of Ta-Nehisi Coates. I thought I was alone in believing that people of color like me have agency. I despaired as Mr Coates did the opposite of what your dad did - take hope away from children of color.
Racism is a fact of life but we alone choose whether we want to be paralyzed by it. I choose to treat it as an additional impediment - no more no less - and strive along regardless. Did I get everything I wanted ? Probably not. But I know that I am better off than I would have been if I had given up on on my possibilities and aspirations.
The next generation can build on my successes.
11
@PB Every successful person hopes that the next generation will build on his successes.
But the sad truth is that it's harder for successful, wealthy African-Americans to ensure that their children will live - as adults - as well as they did as children. This is because of institutionalized racism and because of additional pressures that Black children - especially boys - face while growing up (these pressures may lead them in their teens to reject their parents upper-middle class values, and by the time they've grown up enough to want the lives their parents tried to give them it may be too late).
It's terrifyingly easy for an upper-middle class Black family - with parents have achieved professional success - to slide back down the economic ladder in the next generation, and it's extremely difficult for Black families to pass along their earned wealth and success to the next generation (or two!).
2
Dear Ms. Rice.
I am a white female similar in age to you. My father would have been 98 this year and so similar to your father in age. I do not understand the racism that exists today. You and I grew up in the same period in our history. Although your family struggled with racism to get ahead in life, your parents (and you) have achieved far more than my white family has. Your parents evidently valued education more so than mine. You inherited good genes, received a great education and had parents who instilled certain values in you. I wish others could look at you and understand that the color of your skin did not make your more successful than me/them - but your genes, education, ambition and personality have!
7
Susan Rice’s recollections of her family and especially of her father Mr. Emmett Rice are so meaningful these days , when we have a racist occupying the Oval Office , often inciting violent behavior against non white .
Many previous comments are somewhat demeaning of Ms. Susan Rice , focusing on her achievements as a direct consequence of her alleged privileged life in a bourgeois family.
One has to concentrate on her father , mr. Emmett , and all the inequalities he had to endure to become rightfully part of such a society , that denied him his natural position as a human being.
I always admired ms. Rice , even if adverse circumstances made her take decisions she might have regretted.
I truly wish she will run for the Maine seat in the Senate .
We need a person with her integrity , experience and determination.
Thank you ms. Rice for sharing with us the memorable life of your father .
10
Every parent should impart that philosophy on their children, "unburdened from the notion that we couldn't". But the children have to work at it.
3
Powerful and I applaud Susan Rice as well as her father.
5
My parents were airlifted to the US for higher education during the Kennedy administration. When they realized that they had to use separate facilities on a planned trip to Florida, they canceled the trip, finished the academic year and then moved to Canada.
5
I find Ms Rice to be somewhat disingenuous to her parents incredible accomplishments as human beings. I would never classify these people as anything but the best of the best of any of us. Ms Rice was very successful as well, and not just by her own accomplishments but by her ability to use the life lessons given her by her parents.
It is a shame she needs to underline race as a reason rather than proudly being above the fray. Ms Rice should be very proud of her parents and herself..... end of story.
3
@BM -"Should be proud"? Race was the limiting factor of the country. It still is. You don't want to hear about it, however, presumably because it reflects badly on the country. Yeah, it does. That's her point.
6
@Mark
Yes she should be proud. Aside from that her point is clear and off target. If she cares to have a discussion on race then by all means have one, I stand by by comment, she diminished her parents accomplishments by intertwining the 2 points.
Race is NOT the limiting factor in this country. Our problems really start with the shocking ignorance of our population and the lack of focus on every generation learning from history's lessons.
Thank you Ms. Rice. "Family comes first and must stand together." That sentence has so simply stated, yet with so much meaning behind it.
And lucky us, my wife and I will get to see Susan Rice and Stacey Abrams on Oct 23rd. A review of Ms. Rice's book "Tough Love".
Can't wait.
7
How a daughter of such a dignified and thoughtful man could ever become a powerful enabler of dictators is a tragic mystery to me. She let dictators such as Meles Zenawi run roughshod over millions of innocent Ethiopians and kill many thousands and still shamelessly endorsed Meles’ 100% victory at the last sham election he ran in. She declared that it was a “fully democratically ran election” when all the wold knew that he stole all the votes that gave him 100% of the seats in parliament. Moreover, a lot of people died for that result. Even Stalin and the relative decency to win ‘only’ 97% of the vote.
She writes a good book, an inspiring book about the dignity of man, but that story is lost on her. As her dad says, he fought for everyone else but himself, and it seems to me she fought for herself but every oppressed people.
9
Inspiring but also troubled by this limited perspective from a UN Ambassador. Wasn't Ambassador Rice the face of America at the UN when we stepped aside to let powerless Iraq get 70% destroyed just because Speaker Ryan and President Obama respected deficits more than human life? What kind of spiritual, financial, flesh and blood reparations do we all owe Iraqis? Just to name one such international debt on her watch. Historically- yes - everything she says is correct and moving as heck. The European slave trader's crimes, the White American slave owner's brutality, ongoing prejudice which hypocritically failed to dissolve over the years of WW2. American whites being selfish and cruel to blacks is a great historical debt owed but just a big debt amongst countless others, and it grows by the hour, on a very long American selfish and evil deeds ledger. I totally understand her reasons for not obsessing about her minor role in creating Trump and ISIS. How else could she ever sleep at night?! I just wish she would be honest. Obama acknowledges he brought us to this point. He's honest-I know he can't sleep. Basically, no America is a wounded saint. We are all flawed pigs. Some vastly more than 99% of the others but the saintly American biography is totally absurd. Bill Clinton's "My Life" jumped the shark for us all. It's over.
7
It’s pretty classic for a liberal or left wing radical to deflect criticism as being racism, misogyny or any number of reasons that most people find repugnant. The fact of the matter is that we dislike your politics. You could be man or woman, black or white, or purple for that matter. If you advocate socialism, many people are going to be critical of you.
2
@William , Trump's policy of paying farmers hurt by the tariiff war is the kind of Socialism practiced by the now deceased Hugo Chavez. By contrast, Medicare and Social Security bears resemblance to Socialism in the Scandanavian countries and many European countries. Since you raised the idea that Democrats support socialism, I wonder if you oppose Social Security and Medicare and what your opinion is on the payments to farmers by Trump. Should others get payouts when the federal government creates a policy that directly hurts them?
Furthermore, what difference does it make if you disagree with her policies? This article is not about that.
16
Nice story. But, I don’t get the point. Seems to me like a show off about success! What’s the point of this story? Is the writer bragging about her “success” in spite of being black? Or is she telling other black people that they should be able to “make it” in spite of being black?
To me it just seems like bragging. Somebody setting out to disprove the whole of society as she claims seems to be a bit too much. I think it’s a good story to tell, but I am not sure it’s best to tell it as somebody setting out to prove a country wrong! To me that’s a bit too ambitious! She’s made it. Millions, even some whites, aren’t as lucky as she’s been. I think bragging doesn’t help!!! But it’s nice to know she’s done well for herself!
7
@Freak Plus she is beautiful and smart. A certain type of person keeps "beating the odds." Plus her name Rice, this itself is a whole thing about her people being better than the average AfAm because they could do skilled unpaid labor. It's a very complex life. She's still wonderful but yeah quite oblivious too.
4
As Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs during Clinton’s second term, and as a NSA under Obama, Rice was a danger to African countries. Rice received serious backlash for her work in countries such as Ethiopia, Eritrea; Kagame’s Rwanda and Museveni’s Uganda. Rice has been criticized for approving the invasion of eastern Congo, looking the other way during the genocide by M23 rebels. A group supported by Kagame and Museveni. Rice is also accused of blocking a Group of Experts report discussing genocide in eastern Congo.
In Ethiopia, she conveniently overlooked alleged war crimes in Ogaden and human rights violations in Gambella. She overlooked the hundreds of protesters who were injured/killed under Zenawi’s administration following the 2005 elections. Rice is also accused of exasperating the 1998 conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia. The 2011 sanctions she recommended against Eritrea pretty much demolished the country's economy. According to critics, thanks to Wikileaks, the purpose for the sanctions was to undermine Eritrea’s economy and prevent European banks from working with Eritrea’s mining industry. The Rice sanctions were eventually removed in 2018. And, let us not forget the use of force in Libya.
Americans like Rice may have come a long way within the four corners of the United States. To a degree, that’s commendable; however in truth, while some may see her story as inspiring, I'm not impressed by Ms. Price. Some POC still have to be careful.
6
Sorry Susan, not despite American, but BECAUSE of America is any single American able to succeed. I'm tired, so very tired of every disadvantage being tied to race and racism. Were there obstacles, yes, But is every disadvantage tied to racism? No, it's not true and it's racist. All smart minorities will stop playing victim, and will see exactly how successful they will be. They actually have advantages, look at Harvard's admissions. Only dumb people decide that they are the perpetual victim without that much evidence proving such. Yes you can make evidence appear like it works for you, but there is no real evidence that this is a racist country. The whole concept of racism now has become more destructive than even useless. It ceased being useful a long time ago. We have white children that feel guilty about everything. That they do, is racism.
8
@PJABC
Please reread the article. Those of us who were born white in America have no idea how lucky we are.
4
@PJABC
Did you really just say "there is no real evidence that this is a racist country"? Do you read newspapers, watch TV, read books? The evidence is all around you.
1
@PJABC
"there is no real evidence that this is a racist country."
Really?
2
What a beautiful piece. Thank you for sharing your wisdom, and that of your family.
7
As others have observed here: This is about all the things that money can’t buy. Which of course are the very best things.
America is truly a roiling social experiment (in my mind THAT is American exceptionalism); when bad it is dismal, but when good - as within the four walls and loving embrace you grew up within - it is as good as people can be. The latter is of course what renews us as a nation and gives us our greatness, and enables us to overcome the former when times are dark.
Ms. Rice, your family are inspirational, true Americans. Thank you for this beautiful, uplifting piece.
14
Thanks so much, Ms. Rice. We can all learn from your parents' lessons. I remember going to the nearest town, a four-hour ride on the horse Peace Corps provided, and staring at a group of tourists. It had only been two months since my last visit, but I'd forgotten I was white. As had the families and friends with whom I lived and worked in my village in eastern Niger. There are few experiences I cherish more.
11
Had the pleasure of meeting your father a number of times here in Maine, he was a remarkable man, you should be very proud.
Hope you will reconsider running for the Senate seat here in Maine, we have never needed your brain, your heart and your voice more than we do now.
21
@christopher hyk
A very fine article indeed. I also wish you would reconsider and run for Senate in Maine, a state well ahead of the national curve with ranked-choice voting. And if I'm not mistaken one of only two states that doesn't automatically give all electoral college votes to the overall state winner. (What does Maine know the rest of us don't?)
7
I wish first generation Asians ( eg brown/black skinned Indian and yellow Chinese) could just be allowed to work hard and excel...and not have to score 200-400 points higher on the SATs and for a spot at Harvard and other ivies than wealthy private school African American and Hispanic peers who get a giant personality booster score, across the board, regardless of personality ( an aggressive Asian is considered a confident African American). I would not have a problem with affirmative action if it gave underserved people who deserve it a fair shot.
3
@hindudr what has this has got to do with Susan Rice.. are you implying she and her father get to Harvard because of affirmative action.
2
Read some history. No affirmative action for Ms. Rice's father. His own brains and drive got him to where he got.
And Ms. Rice needed no affirmative action.
An American hero. Why can't we build statues to brave, inspirational men like Emmett Rice? Doesn't he embody American virtues as well as anybody and better than most? Can't we all, Black, White, Asian and Native American, look up and take inspiration from such a man?
10
What a moving piece about a great American! I admire that generation of civil rights who fought for equal rights AND took on the responsibility of self reliance.
Don't let anybody tell you can't succeed as yourselves, including those who insisting on handing out cratches and wheelchairs.
7
Susan Rice's words sound so true. Society and people are what they are, racist, xenophobic, self-centered, etc, but we have to do our best we can and also stay together as a family. It doesn't help anyone if we just blame others or history for our problems. As a part of a civilized society we can work and vote for an ideal world but without self-reliance accomplishments and happiness are not possible.
Michelle Obama, Susan Rice, and Condolezza Rice are great examples of high achievers, in spite of American racism.
5
Exactly. Work your way to the top, don’t complain your way to the top. I get told every day what a horrid human being I am because of my race, often by this very periodical and it’s readers in fact! Thank God I don’t internalize that.
Anybody can do anything in today’s world. The only thing stopping you is yourself.
1
My we all, whatever our ism, live in this world together and all make a better place for having gone through it.
An old geezer on California.
7
Some people prefer black people believe racism only exists when they deserve it, and by not accepting it as the norm, they cause it. They prefer black people become self-hating, rather than able to point out how racism is wrong, as are the racists.
Such people demand to believe their racism, and thereby that of their parents, other family, friends and neighbors, is something normal, not harmless but rather corrective - a burden they have to control the people they've been taught are inferior. They are taught such beliefs are a mark of their superiority, so anyone able to question/challenge those beliefs is a terrible person.
Hence all the hate for MLK, Jr. and others like him.
It is quite upsetting for some to read a story of a woman whose family was not only successful, but that they know racism is something to oppose - not accommodate.
Some people prefer sin eaters, constantly punishing themselves for the existence of racism towards their families, or the Candace Owens of the world who found that when you are black and hate black people who oppose racism, you are beloved by a sector of society.
This was such a benign article on the service. Wonder why it upsets so many people?
8
My Dad was an Army Ranger in WWII and Korea. He told me it was outrageous to make Black men fight for a country which didn’t see them as a real citizen. How can you fight for someone else’s freedom and return to “Jim Crow” America?
11
As I mentioned yesteday - my "comment" was accepted - I live in a retirement community outside of NYC but I read the Times. Until 2 big LIES are faced by many of the folks who live here - the genocide of the natives - I don't refer to them as native americans cuz they certainly didn't think of themselves as "americans" - and SLAVERY - which is totally anti-christian among many other things (money, anyone?) - I will, at the age of 71 not fall for the indoctrination into white supremacy and entitlement that exists here. The other week I heard a woman use the N-word very loudly and I heard another woman say that she had 2 million dollars in the bank. Perhaps I'm in the wrong place. Hiding behind going to church on Sunday and hiding behind the flag are not and never have been my things. It's difficult, but keeping one's eyes open is the way to go.
10
This is a wonderful testimony.
Rice is correct (as her parents taught her) to eschew the racist victimhood that afflicts US society these days, and seek success with hard work and high standards for herself.
1
Dr. Rice you are a force of nature. Thank you for showing us how that force emerged.
4
“I know nothing about this!”
Susan Rice to Judy Woodruff on PBS
I
2
There is only one biological DNA genetic evolutionary fit human race species that began in Africa 300, 000 years ago.
What we call race aka color is an evolutionary fit pigmented response to varying levels of solar radiation at different altitudes and latitudes primarily related to producing Vitamin D and protecting genes from damaging mutations in ecologically isolated human populations over time and space.
What we call race aka ethnicity aka national origin is an evil malign socioeconomic political educational demographic historical white supremacist nationalist right-wing myth meant to legally and morally justify humanity denying black African American enslavement and separate and unequal black African American Jim Crow.
While race is a fiction, racism is very real.
No amount of education nor socioeconomic success nor family stability nor humble obsequious ' Good Negro' life has or ever will make any black person as separate and superior as Ivana and Melania Trump.
It is embarrassingly pathetic and shameful that any black person has ever tried to ' prove' that they were as good as the likes of Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. Every American noticed Barack Obama's permanent brown hue.
The goal of the civil rights movement was to stop judging people based upon their meaningless meritless color. It was not to be color blind .
See ' The Race Myth: Why We Pretend That Race Exists In America' Joseph L. Graves: ' Watson Decoded'
4
Your nation thanks you and your family for your service and patriotism.
And to think, our draft dodging president doesn't consider your father, your mother or you to be American because you are not white and European.
A racist coward looks down on the achievements of your family from the white house and decided you don't rate consideration and that racist coward is cheered on by tens of millions.
I think your dad was right all along.
9
Too few of us have the kind of parents Ms. Rice was blessed to have. I was fortunate that I did. Despite the fact that neither of them went to college and didn’t know anything about the field I chose to pursue, they firmly believed and imbued the belief in me that I could succeed if I worked hard enough, color be damned. I understand completely what a tremendous gift that was, especially when I saw black kids around me whose parents were unconsciously - and sometimes consciously - discouraging them in a misguided attempt to “protect” them. There is so much wisdom and good advice in what her dad told her. And in all the noise about microaggressions (the very definition of sweating the small stuff) and other perceived or actual offenses, it is clear that it is very much needed today.
4
Compared to the rest of the world....USA takes its place....isolated....as the LEAST racist place on the planet.
...
Yes....the USA has a system that is by definition ... racist.
We insist on classifying every individual with one faceless race group or another....we even create non-sensical racist categories like "gender neutral" or "female" or "non-white hispanic" or "hispanic"(ie....spanish speaking catholic that votes democrat....fail to do all three and you're kicked out of the hispanic race!).
---
There's truthfully only three divisions that matter in the USA.
1. White....meaning all of us....the broad spectrum of humanity....white is not a color, but the blending of all the colors....stop and think for a minute.
2. Black.....those colors we deliberately thru our system of racism ....excluded from humanity.
3. Native American...."Indin"(code word for "Indigenous")...those that we destroyed as we attempted to blend them into our definition of "white".
...
The solution is, as always, to broaden the specturm of white.......heck ... at one point,,,,even irish people werent considered 'white". Sounds crazy these days doesnt it?
...
It took "black" self-determination and the miracle of US system of rule of law to create the Civil Rights Era and tuff it out....but here we are.....that Biblical "two generations" (40 years) later......despite all the sensationalism and exageration in the Press......
USA is the LEAST racist place on the Planet.
E Pluribus Unum.
Inspiring! You were lucky to be raised by such great parents and in your career I am sure you made them proud with your considerable achievements.
They are right that people should be judged by the content of their character not by the color of their skin. That is the essence of humanity and should be one of the principal ideals of our diverse country!
1
I'm white (with grandparents on both sides from Sweden) and very moved by this opinion piece. Until I was in my teens, the only black people I saw were in "National Geographic" magazine—except for when I went with my pregnant mother to see a doctor in downtown Minneapolis. I also remember, some 56 years ago, traveling by train with my cousins' family to join them to cruise across the Gulf of Mexico. I was shocked to see a restaurant/bar "for whites only", with a shambly lean-to, 'round the back with a "blacks only" sign. Same thing with water fountains (as we say in the north). Anyhow, I so appreciate hearing Susan E. Rices story; Emmett is so inspiring; bringing tears of joy—along with an ache in my heart that with some people we are backsliding. However, like Susan, as an older, overweight woman, I refuse to allow this to derail me from my path. Thank you for the inspiration!
7
Bless you and your father Dr. Rice. You are true American heroes and role models for us all.
15
My father was drafted into the Army Air Force during WW2 also. He was a weatherman when he was drafted so he had his orders waiting for him. He didn't have to go through basic training. He went to weather forecaster school and eventually served in Northern Africa and Italy. He had the rank of technical staff sergeant. After military service he stayed in the reserves for a few years but returned to his job with the US Weather Bureau and eventually was given the opportunity to specialize in hurricane forecasting as MIC in Key West during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Of course that wasn't how they presented it to him at the time. They needed a person in charge of the weather office in Key West to coordinate with the military for a planned invasion of Cuba. He had combat forecasting experience from the war and knew the routines for working with the military. They were going to invade the island with helicopters, much like they used helicopters in Vietnam.
Is sounds to me like your father was given exceptional opportunities and education for a very productive career once he left the military. My father also shielded us from the harsh realities of the 'real' world but he did at one time express to me when I was a young man that he didn't like the way the military did things. That's all he said but the way he said it expressed a serious disdain for the military.
Your father was correct. It's not all about race but the USA government still treated him right.
2
Thank you, Susan Rice for your eminent, effective service to our country and all of us, and thank you for this clear, moving essay.
5
This is beautiful and explains her current status and privilege.
Here is the thing, the African Americans that succeed are exceptional by any measure in comparison to all peoples, not just their cultural counterparts. Yet whites DO NOT have to work this hard or encounter such obstacles to have a fairly liveable life, which is essentially what most Americans want and what ALL americans should have if we valued their human dignity.
The overachiever path is exhausting and lonely, and having to work 10 times as hard for half as much is still true and a guaranteed path to burnout.
We should create a society where all can thrive , where you are not expected to be an Oprah or a Dr.Rice. Where being you're human self is sufficient to deserve a home, decent employment, healthcare and love.
15
It is rarely half as much, often, it is a quarter or a tenth as much. Those of us who have the resilience, support and luck persevere despite this reality.
3
@Cande Yup.
America’s tragic flaw is racism. But individuals of any color have to overcome a wide range of obstacles and insecurities, speech impediments, combat injury, economic distress, sexual abuse, family dysfunction, physical handicap, mental, skin conditions, weight, health, etc. black America got a bum-deal. But it’s not so easy for most of us who also carry the burden of our backstories.
There has been much hand wringing, of late, regarding what exactly an “American” is, look to this essay- and the responses.
I have not seen such unity of opinion regarding virtue in these pages in at least 3 years!
It seems Ms. Rice and her family are a glowing example of what every American finds valuable and laudatory.
Pride in oneself, lack of apology or excuse, working toward a collective goal and raising a family that makes no excuses but goes forth into American life with bold purpose and integrity.
It seems that these are universally admired and thus, universally American virtues.
Let’s aim for those- let’s aim higher- we all know what we need to do, let’s pay attention to the still, small voice of conscience.
12
I am a dark-skinned African American male, like your father, born in 1960 --just young enough to avoid the Vietnam War and the right age to benefit from affirmative action. I often wonder what I would have become and what type of man would I have been, if I was born in your father's era. Your father is the type of man, I hope I could have been. My definition of affirmative action is giving qualified people with god given talents, like your father and myself, the opportunity to succeed at institutions that have unfairly excluded us for centuries. Unlike Clarence Thomas, who felt he had to prove he got into Yale on his own merit alone and has attacked affirmative action from the bench because the existence of affirmative action some how diminishes his personal achievements. Your father's philosophy of letting other people worry about your race, is one that I fully embrace. I know that I am and would have been, qualified in your father's era to get the Ivy League education I got. The same education that deserving, gifted African American men, like your father, were denied because of the color of their skin. The pursuit of excellence that the Tuskegee Airmen embodied, in spite of degrading prejudice, is inspiring and an invaluable part of our history that we should all remember.
19
I'm glad Ms. Rice's father's (and mother's) recipe for success worked out for her. I look forward to her service in a future Democratic administration. She has the institutional memory of State and National Security when they were functioning normally and can offer critical support to a new Democratic president who will likely be weak on both foreign policy and national security (Biden seems on a long decline).
Her parents worked their way into the "talented tenth" and passed those advantages on to their children. Not everyone with such potential actually makes it, and making it is not only a matter of talent, hard work and personal philosophy, but also a matter of luck — who comes out of war alive, who never loses their self-control at the wrong moment, who receives the right advice when an opportunity comes along, who never suffers an irreversible economic setback.
She focussed this essay on her father, but her mother Lois Dickson Fitt Rice was known as the mother of the Pell Grant, among many other accomplishments.
18
What a beautiful column. So glad you wrote this. Thank you.
12
Ms. Rice,
inspiring to read and feel the love and respect you have to your parents. thank you. important as well, I reckon, is the lesson of coming to the realization i’m what i’m and go from their.
have two comments though:
1. not everyone is as fortunate with talents of mind and character as your parents or as you are. society should be working for everyone, the average and dare i say below average.
2. i can’t read calmly the passage “...recognized the exceptional nature of America, its democracy, its values and its institutions. He knew that only in America could he have reached the highest levels of his field and served at the pinnacles of government. Only in America could he raise his black children to believe that we faced no insurmountable hurdles to our success.” i see that to be dangerously exceptionalism mind set. i don’t think your father thought in that way, and still be patriotic. additionally, i don’t think it is a true statement. in my experience many countries and regions did as well if not better. i believe your father’s humility, that i admire based on what i read, won’t let him say or think so. love, humility, and dignity do not go well with exceptionalism.
thank you.
6
@sy “Exceptionalism” can be understood in 2 ways. The first is as a simple statement of fact, describing a situation as being different or unique or better in the world. The second is as a way to lord it over others and the rest of the world. The second is objectionable.
However, I understood Dr. Rice’s father’s view to reflect the first.
1
@sy here is similar response emphasizing same. thank you.
curious
"He traveled the world extensively and recognized the exceptional nature of America, its democracy, its values and its institutions. He knew that only in America could he have reached the highest levels of his field and served at the pinnacles of government. Only in America could he raise his black children to believe that we faced no insurmountable hurdles to our success."
I think that I see this in a different perspective than do most Americans. And I see the kind of thinking which makes Americans so distasteful to the rest of the world. My eyes settle on the phrase "the exceptional nature of America."Then I see "Only in America ... " And then everything else ceases to matter. Only in America? But not in Canada, or the U.K. or France or .. well a whole bunch of other places. Are they not exceptional? Did not people of colour -- some of them my ancestors -- seek and receive freedom from the King of England while the American government sought to return them to their owners? There is less opportunity for people of colour in those nations than in the United States? What evidence is there for that? What could possibly lead one to such a conclusion? A visit to any American city -- and then a comparison to Toronto of Vancouver or Montreal -- blows that premise entirely out of the water. It is frankly -- and as are so many other questionable premises which go unquestioned by Americans -- insulting.“
@MJ thank you. interstate discussion! nice to read it your way. shows more of your good character but any exceptionalism is dangerous, understood in the 1st way (USA! USA! shouting..) as dangerous as the idea of “chosen people”, also being ‘tamed’ in the manner you do with your 2nd reading (btw, i’m Jewish and shul goer).
1
I've always been impressed when hearing Ms. Rice on TV or reading her newspaper oped pieces with her intelligence, good sense, and ability to communicate. I was not familiar with her father and was touched by these remembrances. Some of the comments I read were touching as well - particularly those from people that knew her father. I'm currently reading the biography of Frederick Douglas by Blight and he talked about some of the same things - blacks should be treated the same as anyone and not have to prove they are better. Douglas also asked what it meant if white people believed that in order to succeed they needed to keep blacks down. Finally, I also see some commentors echo Republican purposeful misconstruing of Douglas's exhortation for blacks to be self reliant suggesting racism is nonexistent and we should be colorblind going forward, at least regarding affirmative action.
5
Thank you for this fine moving piece.
It is humbling for me and perhaps others who have gained privilege because of the color of our skin to see your family's dignity and grace. Most of us walking around with our privilege do not see it as such, but in our society where race is such an issue it is always with us.
Someday we will all live according to Dr. Martin Luther KIng's I have a dream speech and your comments and efforts bring that day closer.
10
@just Robert ; I wish I'd written this comment of yours...
2
"This combination — being a confident black woman who is not seeking permission or affirmation from others — I now suspect accounts for why I inadvertently intimidate some people, especially certain men, and perhaps also why I have long inspired motivated detractors who simply can’t deal with me."
Let me add another account of these traits: they have also inspired a cadre of people to be unapologetic in their pursuit of their dreams, despite the seemingly insurmountable odds.
This is clearly an extension of your family's ethos; I can't imagine a greater feeling of accomplishment than parents who see their children living the family's values in all aspects of their lives.
Many thanks to you and your family for the inspiration.
9
What a powerful story. Being from white privilege I am humbled. Can you imagine the difference between this essay on her parents and a truthful one penned by a child of Donald Trump?
6
Painful yet beautiful to read.
5
Ah yes - this essay is a sad reminder of a number of things, but the one that comes to mind is how far we’ve fallen as a country. We go from someone awesome like Ms. Rice, to whichever lackey is in place now.. sigh...
2
Both your parents were extraordinary people. You are lucky to be their child. No question that extraordinary people can overcome prejudice and make great contributions. Einstein's brilliance overcame anti-Semitism in Germany, not to mention Frederick Douglas, Bill Russel, and others here. It is wrong to require such brilliance to counter-balance prejudice. We will never know how much talent has been wasted as racism prevented people from acquiring the skills needed for their skills to shine.
5
Black people have been in the U.S. military going back to the Revolutionary War, and in every war they have fought with distinction. And, until the military was desegregated after World War II, whenever a new war began, the same white arguments were trotted out, that black people couldn't, and so shouldn't, fight. And every time, the memory of how in fact they had fought effectively for the United States seemed to have been erased from the consciousness of white people, in the North as well as the South (though in retrospect it looks as though at least a subliminal fear of such an ability to fight did exist among southern whites). Only when desegregation of the military created a continuous tradition of service by black people could the myth of black inability to fight be at least greatly reduced.
3
Your parents sound great. You are a fortunate women.
1
Impressive and most inspiring Thank you for who you are and who you did for our nation
2
A wonderful and inspirational read!
Thank you, Ms. Rice! This is the promise of America that sets it apart on the global stage despite the litany of problems it may face from time to time.
And Racial iniquity and xenophobia are cancers that must be stricken from its underbelly if America has any chance of leading in the 21st century and beyond.
4
I did not know your father, but I would like to thank him for all his service to this country.
2
"carrying around the “consciousness of being black continuously is a psychological burden.” He noted: “You cannot bring your best performance to bear as long as you have this additional drag on you."
I saw a variation on this that proves to me he was right.
A lawyer I know who is not in the slightest bit Hispanic does if you think about it maybe kinda sorta look like he could be Hispanic. That is just chance. Nothing wrong with being Hispanic of course, but this sets up the story.
He went with a group of lawyers from all side on a big case on a deposition trip through the American Southwest. One of them took to calling him Jose' at every possible opportunity in restaurants, bars, and business settings. It took, and other guys joined in the "joke."
This newly minted Jose' was subjected to some newly minted discrimination he'd never encountered before. It did not just throw him off his game, it did not just drag on him, it was total sabotage of a high order. He just couldn't function. He was getting slammed, and he did not know how to deal with it.
So I've seen it. It's true. That drags a good man down, and takes away his chance to be himself.
How could my friend have recovered from that, and returned to his normal form? He'd have needed to find in himself was Rice's father is talking about here.
In a two week trip, that was too much to expect. He was a wreck by the time he got home.
5
A very fine complement to the Sunday Magazine excerpt from Times Magazine columnist Thomas Chatterton Williams 2d book that will be published 11 days from now.
Title: Self Portrait In Black and White - UNLEARNING RACE
The key sentence in Susan Rice story of her father:
"Somewhat counter-intuitively, my father insisted, much like my mother, that we cannot allow ourselves to be defined or bound by race."
That is what Chatterton Williams may tell us - We must not be assigned to a "race" by the United States Census Bureau or anyone else. We and the government must UNLEARN RACE.
What will the Times and its Race/Related newspaper to show that the Times has a program to Unlearn Race.
The new head of the Liberal Party in Sweden is Nyamko Sabuni, born in Africa but emphatically not a member of a fictional black race.
Thank you Susan Rice for telling the story of your father, a fine example of what one member of the human race can accomplish against all odds.
Only-NeverInSweden.blogspot.com
Citizen US SE
4
I am sorry, Madam Ambassador, but I don't agree. The frog that lives at the bottom of the well and thinks that its croaking is what brings the rains is surely deluded. Solipsism is not a good way to deal with reality.
Racism in the US is thriving. We have one of those "very fine people" in the White House. And sadly, much of it is due to gifted men and women like your father and yourself. A huge number of whites went berserk on the night of Nov. 4, 2008 when they found that a black man had been elected president. How dare he! They spent the next eight years foaming at the mouth. This is why Trump is president. This is why his base will never desert him. They know he shares their congenital racism. To admit that he might be wrong would be to face up to that racism. I would say less 1% of humans have the depth of character necessary for that.
7
@whaddoino I share your feelings, but trump is where he is because of criminal activities, privilege and an oligarch conspiracy the world over. Emmett and Susan have lived as best they can, and they are an inspiration to us all. Of course, this doesn't mean their path is that of others. Indeed, I've developed, thanks to lazy racist white male Americans, I've developed a disgust, bordering on hate, for those above.
To over come ones tormentors and become more successful than them. Not far from here lived a uneducated Mexican man who years ago was denied a bank mortgage to buy his first house though he had more than qualified for a loan. Fighting mad he set out and bypassed banks, and eventually acquired a notable real estate empire of rentals and apartments worth millions. His kids and grandchildren never needed a bank loan to get a house. A proud family.
2
Nice editorial reminding us what persons of color experience.
2
Moving and powerful. Ms. Rice... you have a ways to go.
1
Wow!What a coincidence. This is exactly what my Jewish immigrant parents taught me about anti-semitism.
1
Seems like the Jelleff field issue is an example of forgetting where your parents came from.
can we get an account somewhere down the line on you felt about lindsay grahamn and john mccain blocking your nomination at secretary of state and the threat you probably pose to men of the dominant culture?
4
Thank you! Feel like a victim, act like a victim, tell the world you are a victim. Result: You're a victim and get nowhere.
That said, blacks back in the day really were victims. Kudos to your dad.
Today, not so much. Far too many people spend more time convincing themselves they're victims and telling the world they are than they do trying to succeed.
It takes hard work to succeed in life no matter what color you are.
2
Thank you seem inadequate. Thank you.
1
Wonderful article. On my death bed, I will remain completely and totally perplexed why race ever mattered to anyone. Yet it does. It's a complete collective delusion hardwired in us for reasons we'll never fully comprehend. It only matters because we've decided it does. We call it racism only when it tips the balance of power --- but it's much, much deeper than that. Your tribal identity (whatever that might be -- racial, religious, ethnic, etc.) is nothing but layers upon layers of data. Your blackness, your whiteness, your Jewishness, etc. --- none of it is in your DNA. You can't control how others see you, but you can refuse to share in the delusion.
3
Wow. This blew me away! To have a parent like your Father is a blessing. To have both ... I have no words to suitably use. How many more potential Susan Rice's are out there who do not have the blessed parents she had who inculcated their children with such wisdom and strength. My own Mother's fervent belief that I was smart inoculated me from believing otherwise. Dad was the opposite. What if I had parents like the Rice's. What does society lose when we telegraph that based upon "isms" a child can not live up to their God given potential. I'm sorry your Father experienced such racism, your Mom too. They passed on their strength and wisdom to their children. An inheritance, indeed.
2
Bottom line...above and beyond all the hard work and determination....thank your lucky stars MS Rice that the " stock" you come from enjoyed the ultimate advantage in life....high intelligence.
1
Thank you Ms. Rice for the story. Many black families hold such beliefs that we must reach our god-given potential. We all must prove to others that we know what we say we know and can do the tasks we are asked to do.
Don't be afraid to prove yourself because the fool will be the person who did not believe you would succeed. And for 100% certain, do not let fools and obstacles stay in your way or prevent you from rising to the peak of your potential.
1
Good article, learnt a lot, but what is the point?
2
Having just seen you at the Brennan Center last night, your messages and your intellect are beyond question. You were brilliant last night, giving all of us in the audience a breather from the stench emanating from DC now, a reminder of normal as well as of the talent that is in our country waiting once again to serve this country.
We must remember what we were, and we must build better guardrails to protect us from ever letting a criminal and his thugs ever enter the halls of our government again.
I only hope you once again enter public service and help us show the world why America was and will be the greatest land of opportunity.
2
Hurray hurray, a wonderful, wonderful piece!! Totally determined, honest, clear, informative, written by a woman who honors her parents, who has thought deeply about her family history. Thank you, thank you!!
What a wonderful essay. Thank you Susan Rice. What a remarkable father you had and mother too. Appreciate your service to our country too. As a white male, I can still use this can do attitude in my own life and regret only that I sometimes let barriers hold me back. At 74, I'm still learning how to live well and how much better America can be one day.
Dear Ms. Rice,
Thank you for sharing your memories and the lessons your father taught you. Your essay distilled in the space of a single page the same lessons I have been learning by myself, intuitively, slowly, by trial and error over the 5 decades of my own life living as a person of color in America. I believe these lessons are much needed for many of our fellow citizens of color and their children. I respectfully implore you to continue sharing your valuable lessons as loudly and as frequently as you can.
1
It heartens me to know there are people in this world who understand and yet persevere, without fanfare and with integrity and quiet dignity. Lovely piece.
13
I had a lot of admiration for Ms. Rice while she served under President Obama. She remains an exemplary model for young people about attitudes and ethics, regardless of their skin color. Can't wait to read her book.
7
ok I love this article and it does speak volumes to the issue every American faces with racism regardless of their race. however I would like to change one of your fathers quotes when he says that if his being black cause a problem it was not going to be him it was going to be the other person's this is so close to how everyone should see race and color. but I think the wording could be just a little better. for instance if anyone has a problem with my race and or views then it is not I that has the problem. it is them that struggle with this issue and force it upon me. Now I do have to say that I am not of African decent but I think that I have a very clear view on race. just a thought and again I love the article.
4
Thank you Susan E. Rice.
Emmet Rice was my mentor in economics at Cornell University and a life long colleague and friend. I admired him greatly. He was a superb lecturer, always well prepared, readily available to students with an old fashioned courtesy not often seen in those halcyon days. He bore stoically the challenges of being one of a handful of Black Professors. And his subsequent banking career and at the Federal Reserve. Not until I reviewed his biography at the Fed after his passing did I learn he served as Tuskegee Airmen. That bespeaks of his humility. Perhaps more than any other individual Emmet Rice was responsible for my subsequent career. We would meet from time to time in DC when I gave testimony on behalf of Bank of America. His demeanor and personality and cheerfulness never changed over the years. It was one of my greatest privileges to have known and cherished this wonderful man who overcome from modest circumstances to reach the among the pinnacle of achievement in American Finance despite awesome challenges facing a Black Professional in America.
21
While my parents came about in the generation immediately after Ms. Rice’s parents, the life lessons et.al. We’re part of the ongoing lexicon of our lives. My parents helped to break down color barriers in Real Estate and Nursing. I carried on the torch helping to break down color barriers in international opera. The pride that Ms. Rice feels is a pride known to several generations of Black Americans who have defied the odds and pressed forward.
18
As I am fortunate enough to be a black man of Ms. Rice’s generation who has been raised in a similar milieu, meaning one of expectations of personal and academic excellence for example, I do easily relate to Ms. Rice’s world view shaped by her venerable father Emmett Rice. I fully understand Mr. Rice’s struggle to separate himself from race consciousness as for the practical purpose that concentration on one’s race is a distraction: I believe that white folk naturally pay no attention to their so called race. What is not stated in this essay is that Mr. Rice was part of what W.E.B. Du Bois would have called, the talented tenth,” as were many of the Tuskegee airmen one of whom I had the honor of knowing. They are exceptional individuals that we must emulate. Let us hope that if more of us people of color can ignore our race that more white people will do the same.
13
@Big Tony. As a white woman, we dont pay attention to our race. It is part of the entitlement thing, in my opinion. I am just Debbie in my world. Not white Debbie. But I am aware that other people do not have this experience because the larger society judges them from the outside. I can only do my small part and try to do differently.
2
I loved reading this piece. In face of the terrible sense of entitlement I see in the current news about this president, it strikes a chord as it shows how others work with diligence, integrity and ability. I hope the future is better for those who, like Mr. Rice and his family, are role models of living well. I also hope the future exposes those who think that an elevated social status means they can bypass paying their dues, exploit and abuse others, and avoid suffering consequences despite amorality. As a result, the Rice family clearly has all the things that money can't buy... while some who have money never have these most valuable things because they are things that can only be earned, not bought: respect, character, integrity, love.
303
@Suzanne
Completely agree with you, except to say that love is not something that can be earned or bought. It can only be given.
13
@Robbie J. Love is definitely not to be bought. The word earned when talking about love becomes complicated because love of parents may be unconditional no matter what... romantic love varies too much to be defined. Love among community members is generally for people who are worthy of love, however. Whether you call that earning it or giving it, it's about what we do, not about money or power. This family is clearly both loving and loved. I'd like more stories like this one, especially now.
20
@Suzanne,
"Love among community members is generally for people who are worthy of love, however."
Call me naive, but I contend that everyone is worthy of love, but in all cases it's someone who has to /decide to give it/: whether parental, romantic, or communal. I am just a chap that holds that love is more a decision and an action, than it is a feeling. That doesn't mean I think it is always easy to love a particular person, but for me to say I love someone, I understand that to mean that I must first make the decision, then take the actions implied by that decision, and it really does not matter what the person who is the object of that love does. It just means I commit myself to that person's well-being, as a minimum.
8
This is a powerful, moving essay, Ms. Rice. I hope that it will be widely read and that your forthcoming memoir will find a wide and varied audience. Many thanks.
I, as a black man, will not presume to elaborate upon your family's experiences in America and your upbringing. All I can do here is be grateful that you became one of your nation's exemplars of patriotism and service because your parents, particularly your father, was your living and loving model.
None of us are responsible or accountable for being born; only for what we choose to become.
509
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18
Hear hear. And beyond what you choose to become, it's what you create. Ms. Rice and her parents have given the country immeasurable riches for us to be grateful for.
Their legacy will also inspire so many others to further create a more just world.
37
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18 Reply to Red Sox, Thank you for your post. I always read your comments and respect your thoughtfulness.
34
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18
Always value your comments. But, particularly this one.
6
Bravo Ms. Rice. Beautiful tribute to your parents. In the whirlwind of Trump's chaos and depravity, it is so refreshing to read a story about the true heroes who make America great.
11
Pretty much the opposite of the lesson taken by Clarence Thomas, and altogether much more healthy. Thanks.
18
Sis. This is beautiful. I really needed to hear this today. We have nothing to prove and the stress of trying is killing me.
17
Awesome father.
Amazing daughter.
Thank you for this interesting and beautiful essay.
5
Dr. Rice, thanks for sharing this part of your life with us. Your father sounds like a man I would have been privileged to meet. In my own Navy service, I was mindful that I was able to increase in rank and responsibility due to men like your father who endured daily insults to their manhood and humanity. It serves us well to remember that whatever the current condition of Black people in these United States, we will not go backward, as some "Americans" would like us to. Too many people endured too much for too long for us to do so.
145
Susan Rice is a remarkable woman and her background shows many of the reasons why this is so. One thing she does not do is say what "God-given talent" means. What is this "god" thing and how does "giving out talent" work? These are real questions because too many people--some very intelligent and well-educated as is Ms. Rice--say things like this yet never seem to think about what, if anything, these things mean. If you don't know what they mean, why are you saying them?
2
What remarkable parents and patriots upon which our nation was built. Also reassuring in these troubled times that the apple does not fall far from the tree...a tree with deep roots in American soil. Thanks for sharing your story.
3
What a wonderful story! I want to read her book. Makes me sad that the struggles her parents had aren’t more recognized and are so unknown to most.
4
The Rice family story is a familiar one. And one that many immigrant families experienced. The treatment of Jewish soldiers in our military often is similar to the treatment that other minorities suffer. One older friend told me the story of when her family was denied a cabin at a country resort. When her family sat down on a bench to decide whether to search on or return home, someone pointed out a sign that said Jews were not allowed and they were asked to get off the bench. She was about five years old at the time and remembered the incident throughout her life. Maybe that is why so many children go onto successful careers. And as adults,Should remind us to lend a helping hand to others on their way up.
9
@Harriet Katz this story you shared is so disturbing. Did this happen in the US or Nazi Germany? How do people even know someone is Jewish!! Horrible to treat other human beings like this, no matter their ethnicity. I wish this ugliness would end already.
@Debbie It happened in the Catskills. Her parents were first generation. Last names often indicate the ethnicity of people, accents, and particularly before the assimilation process the manner of dress. And then there are people such as yourself, who are kind, but from a background where happily you were not exposed to such behavior.
I agree this is a remarkable and uplifting story. However, we should also acknowledge it is very exceptional, not the rule. This is important because long-standing structural economic, racial, social and other barriers make it very unlikely the majority of black people can prove American wrong with their lives as Susan's beloved father did with his. As we know, the exception does not prove the rule.
17
A great tribute to your father (and mother).
More white Americans need to know about the contribution of the HBCUs, especially but not only the Tuskegee Institute, one of the "Ivy League" of African-American institutions.
We also need much wider knowledge of the shameful way that African-American service personnel were treated during World War II, both on and off base, and both during and before the war. For example, the attempted court-martial of Jackie Robinson for defending himself, and the multiple attacks on black servicemen and women off-base in the South (in particular).
Unfortunately, black Americans have had to "earn" their citizenship over and over, whilst white Americans can only lose theirs.
43
This is certainly a welcome and inspirational break from some of the news I’ve been reading lately. Thank you.
17
Enjoyed reading this...didn’t realize what an amazing man her father was.
4
Jason Riley should write about people like Susan Rice’s parents in his column in the WSJ.
It seems that in the political realm there is a perceived ‘woe is me’ attitude among blacks, such that unlike when I talk to whites or Asians, when I talk with a black person I’m thinking to myself, I’m talking to a black person. Why? Simply because of the attention they brought on themselves about how bad they have it, and they want retribution for the past, and politicians who believe they need all the help they can get, give them as much attention as possible, which is beyond what they give to other ethnic groups, including Asians, who’ve come to this country after black ancestors, yet have made something of themselves without such help.
Anyway, when I was in the eighth grade I had a black math teacher, and she didn’t stand for any nonsense in my class, who were quite capable of nonsense. She was a strict authoritarian who was so focused on drilling us in math concepts and applications that I didn’t think of her as a black person, I thought of her as a teacher.
Years later, after I got my MBA and worked for a Fortune 500 company, I told my mother how that teacher was a big part in what I was able to accomplish in the area of numbers. My mother, who later became a teacher, ran into my math teacher and told her this, and my mother said my teacher was very pleased to hear it.
1
@Michael Radowitz Sorry, M. Radowitz, but you come across as a closet racist. You saw blacks as black because of your eyes and your history of growing up in a racist country, not because of their behavior. You accuse blacks of being whiners. Until quite recently if a black person complained of being wronged, he or she could be killed. Anger is not whining. It is the first step, often, to emotional freedom. You sound a lot like those folks who in my little Southern town used to say, "Some of my best friends are Jewish." Perhaps you might start to think of why you have the attitude rather than what the black person you are facing is doing.
4
Blacks and other minorities who are born to privilege overwhelmingly succeed. Kamala Harris was born to two highly privileged minority parents. She then received affirmative action assistance. Like Rice, she went on to great success. Yet with all their privilege, they still act and talk like they were Michael Brown in Fergusson Missouri. They are not. Privileged minorities have far more opportunity than either poor or middle class Whites. Martin Luther King Jr. was far more wealthy and privileged than any of my White ancestors. His descendants, more privileged than me. Race is not the deciding factor in modern society. The mayor of London is the child of Indian immigrants. It is time for people with privilege to stop demanding more opportunity for themselves and look to creating a more equal society of Americans in our country. Racism is a red herring. The true problem is nepotism and privilege.
13
@Michael Green, Point taken, but economic privilege and white privilege are not the same thing. Racism isn't a red herring insofar as it has influenced economic disparities between races in this country.
10
@Leonard
Other than the micro aggressions and other issues, it may very well be better to be a rich black child (especially female) than a non rich while child as you will be courted and handed opportunities to correct the sins of the past.
1
@Michael Green Great comment, better than Ms. Rice's article, and would trade her for you as a contributing op ed columnist any day, even if journalism is not your chosen "metier!"Cannot separate Ms. Rice from her fabrications on national t.v. 7 years ago, her willing participation in a cover up of HRC's inept handling of the clear and present threat to our Embassy's brave souls in Benghazi from an ISIS terrorist unit, which negligence contributed to the death of the ambassador and 3 others.Came to light that HRC at that time was more accessible by text and e mail messages from "denomme" Blumenthal than from Ambassador Stephens, whose "avertissmentts" and cries for help went unheeded.Ms. Rice was the official chosen to do the cover up 5 different times on national t.v. and did so willingly, and if she had any pangs of conscience about her complicity in the cover up, she never verbalized them. Hanson and others have written about the deep state, incestuous relationship between liberal media and Dem. Party, and to lie about a video causing the attack on our brave f.s.officers to take the pressure off HRC and Obama, who should have been aware of the imminence of a terrorist attack but ignored all the signs, is morally unforgivable.If you can lie about the tragedy in Benghazi, can ur word on any other subject be taken seriously?Once again, excellently written comment which goes to the heart of the matter.
1
Beautiful piece and thank you Ms. Rice for sharing . I remember our car trips from NYC never being able to stop for fear that my grandfather would be attacked.
Our country is based on racism and the GOP has bathed themselves in hate and superiority. The Obama administration had to withstand the racist chants of fellow American's as he was saving us from a depression, Unless we change, this country will never ever move forward .
I found it interesting the other day that the brother of the murdered gentlemen who was sitting in his own apartment hugged the white woman who murdered his brother. As usual it is always the minorities who have dignity under extreme insanity. Hugged the woman who wouldn't even give his brother CPR. When will more white people in this society ever show the same type of dignity, I doubt if ever.
Thank you Ms. Rice for your service to this country and for listening to your wonderful parents who had to leave the continual horror of racism.
10
Powerful story. Ms. Rice writes: "Somewhat counter-intuitively, my father insisted, much like my mother, that we cannot allow ourselves to be defined or bound by race."
And this, dear readers, is the French model of racial integration. Take Paris. About half the city is of African descent today. But you'd have to visit to know that, since even collecting racial demographic data is against the law there. The idea: no one's black or white; everyone's just French. Given the number of mixed couples and children you see there, I'd say this model works well.
As Rice family discovered, hyper-sensitizing a population to varying skin tones or other racial characteristics serves to divide, not unify.
Dites-le à haute voix! Je suis français et je suis fier!
8
@Robert So you're saying that there is no racial discrimination in France, simply because the French choose to ignore race? Nonsense. I have seen some of those immigrant neighborhoods of which you speak. Ignoring race has never worked here either, mon ami. We had chattel slavery and a systemic set of laws that codified discrimination based on race.
3
@Robert
While the French model may work in theory, it’s far from perfect and hardly deserves emulation. The ‘banlieues’ of Paris paint a rather dim and dejected picture, in stark contrast to how you describe ‘Paris’.
The marginalization of children and grandchildren of North African immigrants in France continues to this day and is only further exacerbated by the ‘religious’ ban that disproportionately targets the same communities, who’ve never felt ‘French’ despite being 2nd or 3rd generation French to begin with. ie. they or their parents were born in France.
Sure, America has its problems but up until recently, they paled in comparison with the ‘overt’ and ‘pervasive’ racism that plagues most of Europe and the third world.
2
@mch I'm not saying France is perfect. I'm making a very narrow point - that the French model is more unifying than hyper-sensitizing people to their varying racial characteristics. Just as the Rice family concluded.
My dad was a white lieutenant in charge of a segregated black troop in the Army Corp of Engineers. They were among the first to land at Anzio so the minefields could be cleared for those that followed. The casualties were high and dad came home with a purple heart. At least he came home unlike many in his command.
Legal segregation is long gone yet many try to profit by it. Too many have gone to the opposite extreme by demanding diversity, affirmative action goals, and calling those who feel comfortable with less diversity to be racist. The churches in the next town fill with blacks who are not interested in attending a church where they might be a statistical minority. The reverse is also true.
I have come to support the radical idea of forced color blindness in public policy and full choice in private matters. The government and business should stop asking and keeping data on race, sex and other claimed elements of diversity. Newspapers should write articles about people and edit out racial and cultural descriptions not essential to the story. No one should be described as a racist or supremist unless he or she has been found guilty in a court of law. Affirmative should be illegal in all its forms. The Census Bureau, collages, and businesses should stop asking human beings to align with one group or another.
There is diversity in our character and personalities that seems to be ignored when people are grouped and measured against stereotypes.
4
Ms Rice is a very remarkable person from a very remarkable family. Even if color was never mentioned in the article, I'm sure most readers would still consider them to be remarkable people.
I'm an unremarkable white person, with average intellectual and physical capabilities. My parents weren't shining stars. But I've had a comfortable life. Knowing myself well enough, I know that, if born poor and black, I could never muster the strength and energy demonstrated by the Rice's, to achieve a comfortable life. And I don't think my weaknesses are unique.
Not everyone has latent abilities that, if properly nurtured, will result in desired success. My observation is that those people who have the latent abilities, are exceptions. Racism and bigotry, when pervasive, spread their destruction mainly on the vast portion of the populace that are not exceptional enough to just brush it off.
7
@sherm Yet if you are white and not "exceptional," you can still enjoy ordinary expectations. Not so if you are black, brown, often if you're simply a single white woman from the the "sticks."
1
@SFR My point exactly
@sherm Yes, so it is. Somehow I missed it. sorry.
Thank you for sharing this incredibly inspiring, personally intimate snapshot of your family life with us. It stirred up a lot of emotions in me, and really zoomed in on the old cliche, walk a mile in my shoes.
The pictures are beautiful, and you are such a beautiful person inside and out. What an incredible family, and beautifully written piece. The way you explained your father's philosophical viewpoint on how to live and navigate in a conflicted culture was masterful.
10
Susan, I want to tell you I’ve always admired you and your words and work. Race does not matter when it comes to wisdom and integrity. As a side note, you’re physically beautiful and dignified. We in this USA are lucky you are one of us and also, lucky to have had your Dad working for us.
9
Wonderful positive essay. Thank you! I have always admired you.
7
At a time of dispiriting division and exclusionary behaviors toward anyone harboring differences one to another, this essay confidently presumes abiding faith in what should be a very simple assumption every human can and must nurture deep inside on our individual journeys navigating personal paths through this life. No matter what may come to pass in any life, each of us carries individual worth to the world that is as ineluctable as it is undeniable. We each are born with distinguishing talents and value for the rest of us playing out our lives within shared times and spaces. It is more than incumbent on each living being in this world that our first task should be that we seek to witness and understand one another’s unique talents and value to the human collective in which we all have been granted privilege to share. No one is born into this life without value and dignity that must be recognized before all else. In the selfish times that surround us we each would do well to dedicate our personal time defining the worth of others even before we seek to assert personal advantage for individual survival. Thank you, Ms. Rice for reminding us of this essential truth.
11
Very little these days breaks me from my pessimism about the American experiment, but this essay reminded me that there will always be families like the Rices, and in that, some hope. Thanks you.
22
This is a great piece, but it strikes me as almost anachronistic. The views championed by Susan Rice and her father are starkly divergent from those now promoted by the progressive woke left and, indeed, the NYTimes. The 1619 project teaches us to consider racism as the defining factor in all aspects of American life. It encourages Americans of all races to believe that there are immovable structural obstacles to the success of African Americans and those obstacles are overwhelming. The Rices may acknowledge the obstacles and the persistence of racism, but their focus on the opportunities available to them and what can be achieved through determination, makes all the difference. They kept their eyes firmly on the prize.
17
@David MacKay The Rice’s family philosophy is not mutually exclusive to creating awareness of our nation’s history. No one is saying that structural or institutional racism is “immovable,” just that it is real and should be recognized and understood. If we do not know our history, we cannot learn and do better.
15
@Anonymous I love the "no one is saying" argument. Plenty of people think institutional racism is immovable and we are beyond redemption. In fact, the high priest of wokeness, Ta Nahesi Coates, was described and quoted as follows in a Vox piece this year:
"When asked by Stephen Colbert in October of this year whether he has hope for a “better country,” Coates said no. He’s not a politician, nor is he a political figure, and he is aware that the ideas he believes could push America forward in terms of our understandings of race — reparations, for instance — are too radical to take place. America, a country in which, in his words, “racism remains, as it has since 1776, at the heart of this country’s political life,” is too far gone."
@David MacKay , no. The 1619 project and others like the African American Museum seek to fill in the gaps of American history. Those gaps where black people were not even documented, no matter their contributions; they were erased from the American version of events. Only white Confederate generals on horses, many many many of them, but not one public mention of black Americans.
I don't mind hearing about black citizens (and slaves) who contribute but were ignored. Why does the concept of 'waking up' threaten you? It may be fun to sneer at progressives, but the status quo is ugly. As far as republicans are concerned, black people need to accept their 'rat infested' insults and stop running for office.
Susan Rice makes the case very well, and you don't seem to disagree with her father's legacy. Yet those on the right just seem to despise her. Why is that?
3
Thank you. After reading your article, I paused and reflected on the many pieces of wisdom you so generously shared. I believe that most everyone feels that they are not "enough", hense there is so much anxiety and depression avident in our media driven society.
Your parents are special people who figured out how , not only succeed but prosper, against all odds. Bravo to you, and all others who make it against the the mass of the unenlightened.
16
Truth and wisdom are precious things to have, and to try and pass on to our children. These views on race and character resemble those of MLK, and are a reminder that many good people feel a colorblind philosophy is far preferable to the fashionable views, held by so many today, that race defines identity. We really need to take a step back and ask ourselves if we really want something as superficial as the color of our skin to define us.
5
I don’t often agree with Susan Rice but this is really important story she tells. He Parents succeeded beating the bigots by their exemplary
Work. The FAMILY was their foundation!
Where is that Family foundation today? I fear it has disappeared for so many Americans.
10
I loved this article, thank you.
I lived in Vancouver, British Columbia in the 90's. My experience was way, WAY less searing as that of Susan Rice's dad, but still left a mark. I remember the graduate advisor stearing me away from theoretical physics and into experimental physics, suggesting that I couldn't do theoretical work, even though he had no evidence for that. I have a very gifted Iranian friend who moved to Germany and had similar experiences. He told me he was "always underestimated" in Germany.
I wish instead of going to Canada, I had come straight to America and also taken the “never use race as an excuse or an advantage” advice to heart. (This philosophy works best in America.)
20
Awesome story. Very inspiring and thought provoking, a beacon of wisdom for troubled times.
11
An inspiring article, Ms. Rice— and a glimpse into the sad realities of discrimination and bigotry. I hope we live to see the day when all people can be judged by “the content of their character, not the color of their skin.”
14
I sometimes wonder what my father would have achieved had he not seen front line service and been wounded in war. He was depressed and angry the entire time I knew him. Your father was lucky not to have seen combat. War destroys men no matter their color.
35
The Quiet One, my Dad was also very affected by the War, he suffered depression and bouts of rage and alcoholism his entire life. He was also the sweetest, kindest and funniest guy in the world at other timeshare, my medical education led me to believe that he suffered from a mood disorder, but I couldn’t get him to see psych to save my soul. Oddly enough, I too suffered from some of the same issues like depression and I’ve been sober for over 25 years.
I was so angry and hurt and the reason I bring this up is that I feel some of that same anger and pain coming from you. Please believe me when I say that this comes from a place of love and understanding, from one human being to another, I’ve been there too.
There’s an awful lot of help out there, from free to exorbitantly expensive, but it’s so worth it! Our time on this earth is short, we may as well make it pleasant, especially bc now we know better. And when you know better you should do better,
Good luck! Godspeed!
6
@Reenmaur I loved my father and he was at his core a kind person. He was just incredibly damaged by the politicians who send their teenagers to fight and kill each other. He was opposed to war as a solution to our differences. I am too. If I call out war, it is in large part because my wounded father taught me to. It is in honor of his wounded life. As you say, life should be pleasant. And it is not for many because of war. If I am angry, it is not at my father who did the best he could, but at the military-industrial complex which takes our taxpayer money for the pursuit of death, not life. Have I inherited trauma? Of course. And I have pursued mental health counseling too. EMDR is a lifesaver.
5
I was very fortunate to have had conversations with each of Susan’s parents over the years. Simply stated, they were thought leaders in the community and trusted advisors to many.
16
I’ve spent my life ignoring gender and social class discrimination - and stereotypes that diminished people from my ethnic background; because I knew, as your parents knew, That if I let it get into my head I was done for.
Now that I am older, I am dealing with people who think that I should retire and leave the scene. I am healthy and have no intention of doing anything like that. Once again I have to protect my head – my mental state - from those who would diminish me.
Your parents had the right philosophy. Just say no. It’s not that prejudice doesn’t hurt; it’s that you need to maintain your integrity against the mob.
Your parents were heroes and created you. My parents were courageous, and created two daughters who succeeded academically and professionally and take no guff from anyone.
Solidarity with those like us is important, but presenting a model of resistance does not always mean engaging in conflict. Sometimes it means refusing to take the low road when others are showing you who they are.
26
Thank you for sharing your story. It really touched me.
16
Sec. Rice's autobiography is inspiring, especially the parts about her parents struggles during the Jim Crow era.
But the real message being conveyed requires a deeper analysis. Sec. Rice's piece is a very conventional "we shall overcome" narrative. Hard work, determination, willingness to endure the slings and arrows of racism eventually leads to success; even for America's most downtrodden.
But there's no mention of the systemic nature of racism, it's clear institutional character and the now ever clearer link between slavery, race and modern capitalism.
The Rice narrative tells a story of exceptionalism. It suggests that the way forward is an individual path, forged on hard work and perseverance.
These narratives are part of a larger effort to negate the counter-narrative of the Movement for Black Lives and the many other grass roots struggles that are examining the systemic nature of inequality, its class, gender and racial intersections, and the need to re-envision a system that can live up to its promise of liberty and equality. It is a narrative that calls for serious action to forge a new direction.
The Rice story is inspiring, but by individualizing the struggle against racism and capitalism it implicitly blunts the critique that is growing in the Black community.
And therein lies its real purpose. The Black community is key to a Democratic victory in 2020. Which way are we going to go? We shall overcome? Or We must change this mother?
23
@Drspock Her point, echoed by many other commenters, is that family, values and personal responsibility overcome racial barriers and serve as an example of what one can achieve by ignoring the now trendy opinion that systemic racism is what keeps minorities from succeeding. Both sides of the race argument have truths, but promoting a successful culture, like the one Susan grew up in, is a much more effective way to create individual progress than placing the blame elsewhere and expecting affirmative action to solve the problem.
5
@Drspock Mr. Rice showed stunning brillianec and nobility with this one statement : ". we cannot allow ourselves to be defined or bound by race."
Regrettably.Drspock's reply drips with racism and weak conformist thinking
@Drspock
Right on!
Despite Susan Rice's marriage to a white European Canadian American man, their kids are still all and only as black and African in America as are Barack and Michelle Obama and daughters.
1
Thank you for a great article. I totally agree with these lines.
"..that we cannot allow ourselves to be defined or bound by race. As hard as it might be and as unrealistic as it may seem, in my dad’s view, it’s always better to try to act, work and perform as if there were no such thing as discrimination."
There is great wisdom in it. This is, I believe, also the attitude of the majority of immigrants. They come to this country expecting at least some form of parochialism or provincial attitude if not down right discrimination. They come to take whatever opportunity they can get to become successful in spite of all the obstacles. They do not wait for the obstacles to be removed to start their work. They do not ask to have those obstacles removed before they set foot on this soil. Paraphrase Ms. Rice's words, as hard as it might be and as unrealistic as it may seem it’s always better, and it is probably the only sure way to success, to try to act, work and perform as if there were no such thing as discrimination.
If you must wait for the dismantling of racism to be successful, I can only say "tough luck".
16
What’s your view of the responsibilities of the people who have benefited from and perhaps even unconsciously allow discrimination to persist? They have defined themselves as well.
4
I look forward to reading your book Susan. Your father was a wise and caring man. I wish the people of the world would see each other through his eyes and heart. If we did we would know that our worth is a given and that our duty in life is to serve a purposes higher than ourselves. Your parents' photo embodies the loving presence they brought to the world. Thank you for sharing them with me. Donna
9
A great tribute to your parents! God bless.
10
This is such a great story and like any great story is applicable to anyone. Your father was wise and I am sure you know, his wisdom goes beyond race. Your story could help many marginalized and ignored populations. Thank you for sharing. Have you considered writing a book on his life as inspiration to all?
4
Thanks for sharing the story of your great father. He was truly a great American war hero and a thinker who struggled to reach his God-given potential. It is always a treasure to have life long memories of ones father. My father who just completed his century after being born at the end of world war I, at a time under colonial rule in his motherland also realized his God-given potential after freedom at midnight made freedom ring when he was 28 and the Union Jack came down. Now he is just struggling to survive the burden of extreme aging and the medical profession and society does not share my feeling that we should not give up on caring optimally for our aging population. They are not a burden. Some where there is young mind full of memories in an aging body. They are an asset.
Each one has stories of the things worth fighting for and hope more such stories will replace the slimy politics of the day.
11
How fortunate to have such loving parents. I so admire your courage throughout your professional work, and hope you return under the next administration (you thought your security work was tough after the Dubya and Chaney show - Drumpf and Pence has already placed our foreign policy in much more tenable position).
Special thanks to Obama here, as his courage allowed him to selected such talented folks for senior staff / cabinet positions. As a country, we were far safer, more ethical and reliable as an alley to world order and peace. Thank you again, for sharing the left lessons for us all to grow by.
11
I love hearing stories of how pressure has created a diamond instead of just crushing someone. The most wise souls have often experienced hardship and worked through it. The lessons of self worth here would be good for everyone to learn. We are more powerful than we know and our worth is inherent.
10
Very inspirational. Will be sharing with my young adult children. Thank you.
6
Thank you for sharing a piece of your family’s history with us. You and your family are to be commended for all that you have contributed not only our nation but to individuals as well.
7
Thank you for putting into words, beautiful words, what my father taught us through actions and support and love. I also enjoyed learning more about the Tuskegee support staff. My grandfather was a munitions sgt. and my great uncle a pilot who never flew a war mission but introduced my grandfather to my grandmother. My uncle was also the first black urologist in the state of VA. They were an amazing and unusual group of men.
11
This is lovely. Thank you.
14
Incredibly Inspirational, thank you Ms Rice for this sharing this with us, especially at this time.
26
Beautiful. And especially needed at this Time.
17
What an inspiring article. I wish I could meet your Mother and Father and learn from them where their strength and wisdom came. I am also grateful they imbued you with the same strong spirit and courage, as your life's achievements clearly prove. I am grateful to them for their service to our nation, their courage, particularly their rectitude in the face of systemic and institutional racism. Many of those brillant talented Americans, like your Father, who atteneded the Harvard Statistics program during WWII went on to accomplish amazing things as they applied what they learned in their professions afterwards. Thank you for sharing this tribute to them and I salute them.
11
Thank you for writing this. Beautiful story.
14
I am always brought to tears to read about how color of skin impacts lives, for better or for worse.
How would our lives be different if we were born with a different skin color? Who would we be? What would we do?
Some may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
If we were all just kind human beings, no matter what. I hate being old and knowing that day will never come as much as it is in the hearts of so many.
Susan Rice, I have watched you, I have heard you, I have read your articles and I just want to say, thank you for all you’ve done, and congratulations to your family members for what they’ve done, too.
Also, I am sorry for all who suffer in any way because of skin pigmentation. How inhumane. I’ve done my best in many ways to try to be humane, to try to exert and stand for diversity, but know even with all the effort I may have, there is always failure and at this stage, it breaks my heart.
27
A wonderful tribute.
9
What a beautiful tribute, written by a great American.
19
What is most amazing about Ms. Rice's piece is that , in 2019, she needs to remind us again what it is and was like to be African American in America. This should be required reading for every child in America. That she needs to keep reminding adults shows us that most adults haven't been paying attention. I think what frightens many whites is they fear they will be the subjects in an article just like this one in , say, 100 years. Saying 'I am sorry' just isn't enough. And, in my opinion, using money to try and compensate slave descendants will change nothing. It certainly won't make this article obsolete.
19
Money will change everything. I'm a firm believer in reparations. White America needs to pay black people back. Money was stolen and it needs to be returned.
" Until his death, Dad remained bitter about segregation in the military, profoundly objecting to the insult and irony of being made to fight for freedom for all but his own people."
Therefore he remained a victim of insurmountable forces which prevail to this very day.
4
@David Henry
Well no - the actual theme of the piece that one can be angry about unfair circumstances without letting it write one's personal story.
A lesson perhaps for the professional grievance warriors "to this very day".
10
@David Henry In a sense you are right, but I would gently suggest that he refused to be a victim, and he heroically surmounted those burdens. For millions of less fortunate and less gifted human beings categorized as “people of color,” and especially Americans with African ancestry, the barriers seem, and often are, insurmountable. This is the ghastly consequence of the whole fraudulent concept of “race.”
2
@David Henry
Her father was neither an optimist nor a pessimist about enduring endemic American racist prejudiced bigotry. He was a realist.
Neither condescending paternalistic liberal white pity nor condescending paternalistic conservative white contempt accepts the diverse individual accountable humanity of blacks in America.
Too many white European American Judeo-Christians aka majority people demand that black African Americans be grateful, invisible and silent.
4
I had the great privilege to know another member of the Tuskegee Airmen, Clive Grimes, through his daughter. Clive later became the City Architect for Oakland, California, among other things. He taught his daughter (a former housemate) the same philosophy about focusing on what you can do, rather than what others expect of you, given the color of your skin. Clive even helped me redesign our backyard in Oakland, and came along for the shovel and spade work. I spent over a week working along side him and learned a lot.
His daughter became a public school teacher and vice principal. She supported me in my aspirations to leave my old profession (at the age of 53) and become a public school teacher.
I have nothing but respect for the Tuskegee Airmen, and their history was definitely a part of what I taught in both US and World History when we covered WWII. What they accomplished was absolutely astonishing, and showed a lot of people that the color of the skin should not define what the person can accomplish.
20
Susan's dad provides inspiration for all Americans, and for that matter, all people of the world.
What a strong ethic he taught his children:
Work hard and excel,
Believe in yourselves and in the idea that there are no insurmountable hurdles to your success,
Never doubt your own abilities, and
Use your considerable ambition, effort, and skills to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others.
Hopefully, this message will inspire future leaders of our country.
17
Dear Ms. Rice,
Finally I got to see and read something inspiringly positive from African American individual after all the negative opinion of this country. I truly applaud you and others like you from the bottom of my heart. But as painful as it was for your father, please do not believe that "his country" did not regard him as a full man. His country is a BIG country. His country also fought for African Americans in the Civil War with her life. Please, please do not forget the sacrifice she made. And in that spirit, you father and his life exemplify what America stands for above and beyond all the wrongs she had and will no doubt continue into the future long after we are gone. Freedom and love are not given at birth. They are our priviledges that we must fight to protect and nourish. Thank you sincerely for your article.
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So inspiring to read about true-blooded American patriots! Thank you for this article. You restore my faith and energy. May we all join hands to restore and then improve our democracy.
10
Thanks for brightening my day with your article. You and your family are truly inspirational.
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We need people like Susan Rice in influential positions in government to begin repairing the damage done by Trump and the GOP. Secretary of State?
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For all the advantages our country presents our culture is still problematic. There still is this underlying narrative that attempts to pigeonhole people into their respective "places." If you read comments on NY Times articles about women's roles in the workplace there are many regarding what women "should" do. While I am not black, I am a middle age women in the sciences. I never allowed others' low expectations of my gender to define me. Perhaps it's due to growing up with five brothers where I experienced jocular jabs and insults; their comments definitely toughed me. Like Ms. Rice I decided in my youth no other person was going to define my future. Imagine the potential of this country if everyone could reach their goals free of the burden of others' preconceived notions.
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In this Opinion, Susan E. Rice, honors her father and her mother. It also honors her as she reflects on the effects of racism. However hard the valiant, the determined, the disciplined and the wise struggle to tear the wall of racism down, it's still standing. Take a few moments to absorb the strength and caring imparted in this beautiful message.
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I'm awed by the character and resiliency of Americans like Emmett Rice, who had the extraordinary strength and focus to sublimate, and not be consumed, by the daily anger and frustration produced by the indignities of endemic racism. Their lives of purpose and achievement are an iconic model for all Americans.
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I am glad your father lived long enough to see your service to your country as UN Ambassador. He must have been unspeakably proud. I only wish he had lived long enough to see your equally distinguished service as National Security Advisor. As a former serviceman, he would have relished your commitment to freedom and security around the world.
Your comments about race are poignant and painfully appropriate. I believe we are where we are—at such a moment of national crisis—ultimately as a catastrophic reaction of white people—including, sadly, religious white people—to the first black President of the US, whom you served so well.
Trump’s Obama hatred is well documented. It seems Trump has no agenda at all other than to promote himself and erase Obama from history.
But he is failing, and will fail. The future belongs to the legacy you and your parents helped to establish: an America strengthened, not weakened, by its blessed diversity.
That is, in fact, true Christian commitment as well.
Thank you for your service to your country.
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@Paul McGlasson : Excellent, sir; excellent.
8
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18
And to you.
8
I don't think we can deny the social messages we receive everyday from the earliest times we observe others, even if we can't remember or articulate them.. They influence our earliest years. I am the son of a Southern, white small town, high school grad. business man and his German American wife. I grew up in an almost completely white environment, attended secondary school nearby. I sharen no meal with black people until after college. . I did not graduate from a prestigious univ. nor did I work in the highest levels of any organization. There is nothing heroic or secretly outstanding in my work or life. I have done my job; and I have stepped outside for a smoke occasionally. I never thought particularly about "group identity" until I fell in love with a Jewish woman. After that, I had a fantasy relationship with a black waitress at an all night diner in Memphis. All this says I am an outsider when reading Ms. White's story of accomplishments. Her parents overcame greater obstacles than I have ever faced. and they passed on an attitude of determination, iAs i say her comments reminds me of the Jewish woman and the black woman I believed I cared very deeply for..This is to say, as much as i admire all these accomplishments, I feel these are not things I share in common with Ms. Rice. These certificates of achievement are on her wall, in her garden, behind her wall..Even though I now know intimate things, if we passed on the street, she wouldn't smile at me.
4
@KomaGawa And would you, KomaGawa, smile at her?
It was a privilege to know your parents when I was a teenager in New York and DC. They were the only people of color I knew who weren’t domestic employees. Their grace, brilliance, and knack for making even this awkward teen comfortable we’re gifts I will remember always. Thank you for explaining the carefully considered personal philosophies which informed their lives and those of their children.
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Beautifully written.
I hear echoes of the truths my paternal grandparents, both born into southern segregation who succeeded in spite of numerous obstacles, instilled into me and my siblings: make no apologies for who we are; be a good person and treat others as we would want to be treated; work hard; live well and fully.
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SUSAN RICE Writes powerfully about her experiences and those of her parents and brother. She lives free of the need to prove herself, thanks to her parents' courage and determination. In these ominous days when our democracy faces existential threats from a crazed paltry excuse for a "president," her courage and integrity are a beacon of hope. We have a dire need for a return to transparency, integrity, intelligence and freedom that she championed, along with others on Obama's teams! The nefarious bunch of nattering nabobs of nihilism that plague us must be removed and replaced by competent, sane, caring individuals who recognize their own worth and that of others.
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This is what America is all about. Achieving your dreams despite the road blocks. Whether it is racism, education, or poverty.
Racism is still an issue, but I believe that the attitude and resolve displayed by the Rice family shows what can be achieved regardless of your lot in life.
This is a wonderful, inspiring story whether you are a democrat or republican, as we are all Americans.
22
“Never use race as an excuse or advantage “. A judge just ruled that Harvard can discriminate based on race. I wonder what Ms Rice thinks of that?
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@Bob , actually the judge just ruled that considering race among many other factors is NOT illegal "discrimination." What do you think about legacy admits, or even athletic admits - aren't they some form of "discrimination?" After all, the original and most well-understood definition of the term is "recognition and understanding of the difference between one thing and another;" in other words, most people engage in some form of "discrimination" every day. The fact that every single Asian or white applicant to Harvard is not automatically accepted can hardly be called "discrimination" with any other than this common sense understanding.
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Well, race as an advantage within the Harvard admissions realm is actually disproportionately linked to white legacy admits at Harvard... I’m assuming that’s what you’re referring to.
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@AAL
AAL, you do understand that favoring legacies, athletes, etc. is not constitutionally prohibited, while choosing by race is.
1
Very inspirational.
13
Very much enjoyed this essay about this exceptional family. What a lucky woman to have such strong, intelligent and supportive parents.
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Your family stood - and stands - heads and shoulders above all of us. Thank you, your father, and your mother for serving an often ungrateful country that has benefited tremendously from your leadership.
69
Wonderful. Wonderful. Just the inspiration I needed in my head as I start my day. Thank you.
123
What a wonderful tribute. This is one of those articles where I want to remember every other line.
I only want to add: Life isn’t fair. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do everything we can to make it more fair. But it also doesn’t mean that our lives are not our own. It’s the people (like our president) who live by demonizing & taking advantage of others who don’t take responsibility, who have no control over their lives.
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The majority of white voters in this country believe that the ill-effects of racism of blacks is no longer a problem for which they or our government have any responsibility to address.
There is nothing in his beautiful essay that contradicts this view. All responsibility to correcting the huge economic racial disparities in this country lies in blacks and their culture alone, according to the writer, if only by omission of any other message.
Unfortunately 6 decades after the end of southern apartheid, the economic disparity has barely budged and inspiring essays are not the panacea.
Without expensive and significant education reform, which can be poverty based instead of race based, we will continue to be a country divided.
For ideas about what this reform may need to look like, it's a good idea to look at what Germany did at the start of this century to address their own failing education system.
Their remedy is a lot more expensive than pep-talks or affirmative action and the payoff will take years. However, the results will pay back the investment many times. The problem is, U.S. voters are probably the most short sighted in the modern world.
https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2015/nov/25/what-can-we-learn-from-the-great-german-school-turnaround
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@alan haigh The reality is simply that Americans are not Germans. Germans are a people and they have a tradition of training their children into adult Germans, which means Germans have a consensus of what ought to be in their society. Americans are not a people and every American is entitled to seek what is the best for himself. Americans are a loosely associated group of individuals who are supposed to make themselves successful. That is the characteristic of immigrants, they strive to and have to success no matter what. In that sense Mr. Rice is indeed a quintessential American. The problem is that the majority of Americans, Black and White, don't have his kind of quality to speak of. America is great for able people like Mr. Rice. But how about the bottom 50%?
3
@Show-Hong Duh, Americans and Germans are completely alike in what will inspire their children to learn and compete and culture is always evolving. I would like to see American culture evolve in a way that will make our country less divided and economically stronger.
I think the main difference is that Germany doesn't have the benefit of a huge well of natural resources to mask failures in the development of their human resources.
When our culture was more divided between states on this issue, it was the New England states that invested more in public education whose economies most thrived, compared to the more individualistic southern states.
German culture is part of our culture, it's all about what we emphasize politically.
The first thing is to take the reigns of political power from our culturally backward southern states and start genuinely planning for the future by investing in it, including the children of poverty.
5
@alan haigh "The first thing is to take the reigns of political power from our culturally backward southern states and start genuinely planning for the future by investing in it..."
Absolutely. A tribe is only as strong as its lowest common denominator.
1
What a beautiful essay about an amazing American family. Thank you.
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@Elizabeth Quinson
Indeed.
Bias can be a confounding, vexatious, and pernicious problem.
“To add insult to injury, he [Emmett Rice] saw German prisoners of war being served at restaurants restricted to blacks.”
Germans had reinforced-even as prisoners-the maniacal racism that the Allies were fighting against.
And again “He [Emmett Rice] was spared combat by President Harry Truman’s decision to drop atomic weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, provoking the Japanese surrender.” Using a WMD against a nation of POC was a godsend for a black man and his daughter.
Wasn’t race a factor in that decimation?
Ms. Rice, however, does hit on a key point which I hope is not too subtle: Striving. Her mom, dad, the Tuskegee airmen all were strivers. And remained so all during their lives. Yes America, we are a meritocracy. And meritocracy is not institutionalized racism. Unless you need a ready excuse for your failures.
2