That's Just Nuts!

Last week, the Washington Post published an article about a woman named Harriet Glickman, who in 1968 was so taken by the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., that she was compelled to do something about it. You can read the full article here: http://tinyurl.com/o2qnx5h .

But what could she do about a nation in a crisis of race relations? She was "just a schoolteacher." She decided to write some of the nationally syndicated cartoonists, such as Charles Schulz, who wrote about Snoopy and the gang in Peanuts. Her request to the cartoonists was simple - it would be a great step forward if they included African-American characters in their strips (the common term of respect in that day was "Negro"). There was some initial pushback (not because of bigotry of the cartoonists but because of the trouble it would cause from the intolerant crowd), and yet she persisted.

And that is how the character of "Franklin" was introduced into the Peanuts gang. It caused some trouble for Schulz, but he stayed with it. We cannot measure the impact of such a move, but certainly the way Schulz treated Franklin was a demonstration of normalized friendships between people of different ethnicity.

Two angles on this story fascinate me. First is that a person without a national platform developed a terrific idea and persisted through the barriers in order to make positive change at the national level. She was logical, persuasive, and respectful. She didn't try to shame or manipulate anyone. She was undeterred by difficulty. As a result, the entire country was introduced to a positive and popular display of good race relations, and this was an influence that was before an entire nation day after day. She was a schoolteacher who used the persuasive power of the pen.

The other angle is how Schulz used his work and his giftedness to address a problem that had nothing to do with his job, so to speak. He was not a policymaker or the leader of a movement. He drew cartoons because he was a cartoonist. He didn't use his platform to trash anyone, foment anger, protest, or judge anyone. He drew cartoons because he was a cartoonist. He just used his ability to draw cartoons to contribute to the positive change of his culture.

We are all gifted with talents and abilities. We all do something with some skill. Whatever those abilities may be, I can almost guarantee there's a way to use those abilities to contribute to positive change in your neighborhood, city, state, nation, or world. It doesn't have to be through grabbing a loudspeaker (although there are times for that). It can be through what you choose to do with your abilities, and the manner you choose to use them.

How can your giftedness be used like Glickman's and Schulz's to bring change through the work you are skilled to do?