I recently watched the sports classic Remember the Titans. It tells the story of a football team in the South during the 1970s, forced to integrate amidst racial tension and fear. As always, my sympathies were with the people who showed courage, dignity, love and acceptance. I was repulsed by those consumed by hatred.
Then I thought back to a recent op-ed in this publication regarding me and the El Cajon City Council’s lawsuit against California over Senate Bill 54. I thought it was vitriolic and based on the language used, I realized the author probably sees me as one of the villains in his own moral story.
In his mind, I am likely aligned with the people in the movie who resisted integration. He probably believes he is standing on the side of justice, which means I must be standing on the side of evil.
That realization stopped me.
Because I know who I am and who I am not. And I also know this: he probably feels just as certain about his own goodness as I do about mine.
That is where the real danger begins.
The issue itself is straightforward. I am the mayor of El Cajon, and our city has filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of SB 54. We believe the law improperly restricts cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities in ways that reduce our ability to protect residents. The state believes it has the authority to set those limits. We disagree, so we are asking the courts to decide.
That is exactly how the American system is supposed to work.
But for months, members of our council have been shouted at, accused of being Nazis, fascists, immoral and worse. The rhetoric has grown uglier and more personal. At times, it feels as though disagreement itself is being treated as proof of evil.
Watching Remember the Titans reminded me that this pattern is not limited to one issue or one political side. Both sides increasingly believe the other is not merely wrong, but morally corrupt. Both sides retreat into echo chambers that confirm their worst assumptions. Both sides are tempted to abandon intellectual honesty and open dialogue in pursuit of victory. Both sides use contempt and dehumanization to strengthen their tribe and reassure themselves of their moral superiority.
Again, this is where the danger begins.
So here is my suggestion: let the courts decide. That is the American way. We do not have to agree about SB 54. We do not have to agree about immigration policy. But we should be able to disagree without turning one another into Marvel Comics-style super villains.
I’m not alone in worrying about the overheated rhetoric in our country. On the national stage, political violence is no longer unthinkable. Even in local government, the tone has become more hostile, more accusatory and more unstable. That should concern all of us.
I have always thought of myself as someone trying to do the right thing. My opponents assuredly believe the same about themselves. That does not mean we are both right, but it does mean we should be careful before assigning one another to the darkest chapters of history.
Perhaps we should argue the law, argue the facts, and let the courts do their job.
In the end, the Titans win their championship and largely overcome the racial hatred that once divided them. The movie closes ten years later at the funeral of one of the star players. As the former teammates — black and white — sing together in unison, the message is unmistakable: hatred begins to look small and petty in the light of friendship, shared struggle, achievement and loss.
They were all Titans, just as we are all Americans.
Bill Wells is the mayor of El Cajon.
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