Integrity

Today we learned that Mitt Romney was a vigilante at his Prep School. Like a lot of high school kids in the sixties he bullied and shamed a homosexual. He led a group of young rich preppies in holding a "queer" down and hacking off the guy's blond locks.

In the 60s sexual discrimination, racial discrimination were both accepted practices. And many of my friends belittled, teased and reveled in "nigger" jokes. It was what they did.

Only I didn't do it. For some reason I was taught that it was wrong to pick on people.

I do not know exactly where I got it. But, when we invited a black girl to my fifth birthday party, and some of my friend's parents balked at coming, my mother told them all to go to hell, and we had the party without them. I think I got it there.

Maybe it was that she knew I was part Cherokee. I certainly didn't know it. I did realize that I was darker than the other kids, especially in the summer.

I was also faster. A lot faster. I could outrun everybody. It was the first thing I realized I could do better than others; and I did not join in the mocking, the put downs, the hedonism. Somehow I did not need to put down others. Maybe it was because I could impress with my speed, I don't know. I think it was what my mother taught me.

And we had our vigilantes. We had some first class bullies in high school who actually intimidated some teachers, beat the hell out of lots of kids, and screwed girls (and bragged about it). In those days girls who "put out" we're whores, and regular guys avoided them. It did not matter if they told the truth, they were bullies, liars, and everyone was afraid of them. They ran the high school.

And the first year at Stanford I ran into Mitt Romney. We both were homesick freshmen and he was a rich preppy from Michigan.

So here I am, a part Cherokee from Redding California who was living a dream, talking to Mitt, who hated Stanford, and was as homesick as I was. I did not know he was a bully. I knew he was way different from me, richer, a preppy whose father was a presidential candidate.

He never talked about bullying the queer in prep school. I was shocked when I read the story today. But then he lied, and said he did not remember, and that reminded me of the creeps in high school who lied, bullied and yes raped.

And I outran and kept my integrity over them, including the ordinary bully Romney.

It was his latest lie that reminded me.