Dignity: Condoleezza Rice
Who would you like your children to emulate? I have often considered this as a parent and have wanted to surround my children with good role models; without role models close at hand, I have wanted to encourage my children to read biographies of those who have loved God and endured hardship well. When Martin Percy stated in his plenary at Oxford: “read biographies of people who got through hard times,” some of my parenting efforts were validated. [1] While reading Vincent W. Lloyd’s book Black Dignity, my thoughts went to a book I had given my daughter when she was in high school: No Higher Honor by Condoleezza Rice. [2] In this blog I hope to articulate the struggle I have with the messages shared by Vincent Lloyd in Black Dignity and provide a role model worthy of emulating by looking at Condoleezza Rice.
Vincent Lloyd looks across the generations, dating back to the years when slavery segregated blacks from whites. His book takes some broad-brush strokes in addressing the concerns which black Americans face. Condoleezza Rice is one story among many, where growing up in an intact Christian family was the heartbeat of her daily existence. Lloyd and Rice have two different objectives in communicating what it means to be a black person growing up in America. Both are worthy of their readers’ consideration.
Family Matters
Vincent Lloyd offers a picture of family without the need of a father. Namely, he speaks of Barak Obama who was not raised with a father. Obama’s memoir reflects on his desire for a father figure:
“It is structured around a search for substitute fathers, for alternative sources of authority: he tries out his stepfather; his grandfather; Black nationalist college students: poor women whom he would organize on Chicago’s South side; Harold Washington, the first Black mayor of Chicago; and the Christian God. None was up to the challenge.” [3]
Despite Obama’s resiliency in not having a father, I find Lloyd’s sentiments being sad. Lloyd continues to paint a picture of adaptability and cohesion in black families:
“Instead of seeing the relative lack of nuclear families as a pathology. Or as a continuing hardship inflicted from the era of slavery to the era of mass incarceration, those who embrace Black family today see the experiments in living together found in Black Households, often led by wise women, as models to which all should aspire. A fatherless home is not necessarily a household without a needed role model.” [4]
Other role models provide substantially but the absence of a father is felt in one way or another. Condoleezza Rice provides a different example as she was raised in a home with both parents. Her memoir shares how each of her parents impacted her life in addition to her grandparents and others in the community of Birmingham Alabama. Her hometown was at the heart of segregation in 1963. In her book Extraordinary, Ordinary People, she writes about her parents; “they rigorously controlled their environment to preserve their dignity and their pride.”[5] Condoleezza writes about what her father believed about his girl when she was born; “from that day on he was a “feminist”- there was nothing his little girl couldn’t do.” [6] A good portion of her book notes how her parents sacrificially gave to her. A father’s impact on a child’s life is far reaching and for those blessed to have emotionally healthy parents while growing up, they gain immeasurable benefits.
Mindset Matters
Vincent Lloyd provides a picture for black Americans which is intrinsically tied to the past, specifically to past slavery. I am curious how this mindset affects him and others who wish to bring about revolution? He states, “We still live in the afterlives of slavery; we are treated as object rather than person, disposable, susceptible to premature death. Integrated into laws, habits, and hearts, anti-Blackness makes Black life impossible.” [7] I do not want to dismiss how this is a reality for some, but I wonder how life is “impossible.” The author makes other sentiments which sound bleak and altogether abysmal. He states: “Today, hope hardly figures in the moral vocabulary of the Black Lives Matter movement. In part this has to do with a turn away from Christianity, tainted by its association with respectability; hope is a very Christian sentiment. Hope seems futile.” [8] I am grieved to think this is the perspective Lloyd takes. Bedrock to the Christian belief is 1 Corinthians 13:7- Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Hope is never futile for anyone willing to embrace the message of Christ. Maybe Black Lives Matter activists need to turn back to Christ and this Biblical belief?
Condoleezza Rice and her family carried a unique mindset while living in a racially segregated state and in a racially fueled era. Condoleezza states: “If you were black in Birmingham in 1963, there was no escaping the violence and no place to hide. [9] In spite of this, Condoleezza chose to take this stand: “There is no room for being a victim or depending on the “white man” to take care of you. That self-sufficiency is the ethos passed down by my ancestors on both sides of the family, and I have internalized it thoroughly.” [10] In addition to taking personal responsibility for the quality of their lives, John Rice was a presbyterian minister who held to Christian values. Their family knew that when you work unto the Lord, there is a sure inheritance. (Colossians 3:23-24)
John Rice knew the quality of his daughter’s work. Condoleezza asked her father what he thought about her being hired under affirmative action when considered for a teacher position at Stanford University. “Don’t worry about it,” he said. “Their processes have been excluding us for years. Just go and show how good you are.” [11] Hope prevailed in the Rice home, Condoleezza writes of her family’s values: “If you were twice as good as they were, “they” might not like you, but “they” had to respect you. One could find space for a fulfilling and productive life.” [12]
I believe true revolution will come with families like John and Angelena Rice, who were committed to one another and to their only daughter. Condoleezza “became the sixty-sixth U.S. Secretary of State and ‘was’ the first black woman to hold that office. Prior to that she was the first woman to serve as National Security Advisor” and was a provost at the prestigious university of Stanford. [13] Condoleezza Rice’s life is one of great dignity. She is a woman I hope my daughters might emulate.
[1] Martin Percy, DLPG Oxford Plenary, September 2023
[2] Condoleezza Rice, No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington
[3] Vincent W. Lloyd, Black Dignity, p.90
[4] Ibid. p.76
[5] Condoleezza Rice, Extraordinary, Ordinary People, p.2
[6] Ibid. p.33
[7] Vincent Lloyd, Black Dignity, p.144
[8] Ibid. p.93
[9] Condoleezza Rice, Extraordinary, Ordinary People, p.92
[10] Ibid. p.158
[11] Ibid. p.201
[12] Ibid. p.3
[13] Ibid. p.355
About the Author
Kristy Newport
6 responses to “Dignity: Condoleezza Rice”
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Kristy,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I enjoyed reading your post. From your post I found myself asking this question. How do varying family structures and backgrounds, such as those reflected in Condoleezza Rice’s upbringing and Vincent Lloyd’s observations, influence individuals’ understandings of dignity and their approaches to addressing systemic challenges.
Deron,
Thank you for reading my blog!
You ask a power packed question…it is a good one!!
I am sure my answer will not do it justice but here are some initial thoughts:
Different families (due to different family structures) have varying definitions of dignity. I can wrap my brain around this when I see so many people who have such varied experiences from their families of origin. Not one is alike. Often as a therapist I assess a client’s positive role models… they have had in their life…typically a good role model gives me an idea of what morals a client holds (or thinks they should uphold). If I can help them find one or two role models-this is foundational to creating dignity.
also
As a therapist I am aware of generational patterns. These patterns effect current generations. I want to have empathy for past generations who have held on to poor ways of relating in order for clients to gain and extend empathy themselves. I believe this is a way that I am establishing dignity/ the client has insight and then has a new definition for dignity for themselves.
I believe you share a Scripture in your blog. I will go back to this. I think it comes back to what Christ has provided us. We have dignity because He intervenes in our lives….(with all the varying families we come from) and says….do you want to be apart of my family?
Thanks Bro for asking me a difficult ?
I got long winded in answering
Thanks for your blog Kristy,
Great families as that of John and Angelena Rice must be very rare. I think Lloyd is writing from a general Black family perspective, probably the majority who still struggle as a result of many years of suffering and marginalization.
Jean,
Thank you for reading my post and commenting.
I high light the example of Condeleezza to find what makes for an “exception.” Her family and upbringing was an exception. I believe there is a lot to be learned from this approach.
This is similar to what we do when we study star athletes. What sets them apart?
I have great joy in working with clients and I find that they are able to employ strategies that might be considered for the exceptional few…and they are rising/surpassing the expectations of their families of origin/cultural back ground
Have you experienced this working with those in the prison?
What ethos did your mom or dad pass on to you that you instilled to your children?
Great post, gal!
Alana,
Ethos: It means character in Greek
My husband and I have hoped to have raised our children to know what it looks like to have a relationship with Christ. Reading Scripture, practicing prayer, and looking to the needs of others has been a value in our home.
My blog on Mimesis would give you a good picture of our family and our extended Newport family.