Why Can’t We Put the Past Behind Us?

Twice this past week I witnessed divisions within communities that I believe are detrimental for everyone involved. These divisions go back decades, if not longer. I’ve had conversations with both groups suggesting that it is in their best long-term interest to put these differences behind them and to find common ground upon which to work together.

In MN, I was told of how many local citizens resent the new wealth of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, which I blogged on yesterday. There are deep scars that date back to spear fishing on the Mille Lacs Lake.

In TX, there are “silos” in existence in some towns of Anglos and Hispanics. I told several groups in TX during my talks of my observations and suggested that both sides needed to put their past differences behind them, figuring out ways in which to work together.

To be really successful as communities we often have to “bury the hatchet” and begin looking to the future rather than digging up the past. The past can be a major obstacle to being able to build a bright future.