NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Martin Luther King, Jr. said in his historic I Have A Dream Speech in 1963, "We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back."
For America in 2023, that means diversity, equity and inclusion. So, what does that mean in a Hutchinson context? Dr. Hence Parson, long-time professor at Hutchinson Community College, puts it this way, "We can integrate or desegregate all we want, but until we include people, in terms of, their ideas are important, their work is important, we're not going to go far."
Leader of the Hutchinson NAACP for over 50 years, Darrell Pope, wants to continue to focus on what brings people together, regardless of their background.
"The bottom line is we're all human," Pope said. "We all have the same needs and desires to experience life. When we understand that, well all these other things, I think, will come into play."
Pope believes that inclusion is a deliberate act. It will, and does, take effort.
"We do a lot of talking," Pope said. "We say, say what you mean and do what you say. I think that you have to quit talking and start doing. If we're deliberate in going out and including people that we know, that have not been included, or been at the table before."
The Hutchinson City Council has an opportunity to do that with seventeen applicants for its two vacancies that will be discussed on Tuesday. They can choose to have people that think as the three current members do, or they can choose to bring new perspectives to the room. It is their choice to make.
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