Beat Piece

[H2O Man]

6. Years ago,

in one of a series of interviews I did with Onondaga Chief Paul Waterman, we talked about the man who became the first Tadodaho. He was a cruel man who enjoyed inflicting great suffering on others. But he changed. That is an extreme example, of course -- Paul said that he had to be so bad, in order to become so good -- but we do live in extreme times.

In an interview published in the February 25, 1965 Village Voice, Malcolm X spoke about the need to allow room for people to change. He noted that doing so meant they would change. But it is an error in thinking to not allow them that room.

People tend to be transformed in two ways: for some, it is an ongoing, internal process; for others, it is the result of external factors that they may not fully grasp. It is best, of course, for any society to have a combination of the two in order to effect meaningful change. And the truth is that society cannot change, unless people change -- just as conversely, society can't change if people remain the same.

I believe it is good to be skeptical of anyone who claims to be a "leader." And to be fully aware of any group's history, including recent history, be they a church or nation. But that does not exclude the possibility of change.