Dear Readers:
This is Robert talking.
Wednesday is supposed to be a column day over here at Etiquetteer, but I’d be lying if I said that the events of the last week, begun by the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis policeman, haven’t left me with a lot of thoughts, but no idea how to express them. What does it matter, which plate to use or how to wear gloves, in the face of great social upheaval?
Without question the topic of the day is protest. Etiquetteer wrote about the etiquette of activism in 2016; aspects of that column seem quaint four years later. Trying to write about protest today, I began with “Speak your truth, but if you don’t know what to say, listen.” And I realized, that’s me. So, I’m listening.
There are so many unheard voices in America, fellow citizens who have had enough of being ignored. Start surfing and searching the internet and you’ll find them; I am. This isn’t a time to be comfortable or complacent, as safe as comfort and complacency might make us feel. That means this journey may be difficult. Don’t turn away from it.
There is still interest in all the usual etiquette-related topics, of course, and I expect Etiquetteer will return on Sunday with something more typical. But for now, I have a lot of reading and learning to do outside the usual manners curricula.