Johnnie Cochran

A lthough America had taken great strides toward abolishing racism, the task was not complete—at least not that Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr. could tell. As Union Board's Black History Month keynote speaker, Cochran said to rid the country of racism, "... [what] we need is an open and honest national discourse on race." The lecture Cochran delivered Feb. 20 at the IU Auditorium stressed America's need to "bridge the divide" that separated the races, especially blacks from whites. Cochran shared personal experiences with racism and his successes in creating racial unity. Junior Nick Klaers said Cochran's use of personal stories and real-life examples helped him understand the ways different races view the divisions between them. "I never understood why [African-Americans] felt that race was such a big part of everything that they do," he said. He added the lecture gave him a different perspective. "I was really glad that I got to see him deliver his speech," Klaers said. Cochran said he felt the effects of "the divide" in many aspects of his life. "Not a day goes by [that] AfricanAmericans aren't reminded that they are different," Cochran said. "[African-Americans] have to work twice as hard and he twice as good to succeed in today's society." Despite the challenges Cochran faced, his work earned him national and world recognition. In 1995, he was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the California Association of Black Lawyers. He also won the annual President's Award, the highest award given by the 100 Black Men's organization. Cochran became a household name while defending the once football great, O.J. Simpson, who was charged with the murder of his ex-wife and her friend but found not guilty after a grueling year-long trial. He said the Simpson case, which was said by some to revolve around the question of racial prejudices, clearly illustrated racism alive in America. Cochran also added that hate crimes and Ku Klux Klan rallies had increased, "white-only" establishments still existed and prejudiced assumptions still regularly denied African-Americans the quality customer service they deserved. He claimed these were a few examples of the "national divide." Yet, Cochran said despite all that divided, more united. "A benevolent streak of basic good in all of us, values and morals are the things all United States citizens share," he said. He suggested to bridge the divide, everyone needed to "start with introspection, understand one's feelings about race and then make oneself open to change. "Something so ingrained in our psyche [as racial prejudice]," Cochran said, "does not just go away." He suggested a more united nation required a conscious effort and a desire from both sides of the divide to bridge the gap. Sophomore Ed Arauco agreed with Cochran's notion that more open communication was necessary to bridge the divide. He said, "Not many people want to talk about [race] because they are scared about it." Cochran's strategy to combat racism was simple. He asked people to "expand [their] realm of existence" by meeting and getting to know others who are different from themselves. For example, he said at the university level students could start by studying, eating lunch or having a social function with those whom they did not usually associate.

The bridge Cochran wanted to create would not build itself and would not be constructed by government policy. Rather, he said, people must all "take it upon themselves" to learn about others outside their own races, because "knowledge is the power to control your own destiny."

Addressing a full audience at the IU Auditorium Feb. 20, lawyer Johnnie Cochran asks for racial differences between races to be acknowledged and alleviated. Cochran gained fame after defending O.J. Simpson.

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by Amy Lohrmann

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