‘Wherever You See the Trace of Man, There I Stand Before You’: The Complexities of God and Human Dignity Within Judaism

One of my favorite students, Dierre Upshaw, who graduated from Dartmouth College several years ago, returned to the College to be my research assistant for the summer term of 2013. To thank him for his efforts, I asked him to join me when I was invited to a formal reception at the White House, hosted by President Obama, for Civil Rights leaders and their families. The evening was spectacular: we had the opportunity to meet and speak with heroes of the Civil Rights movement, major political members of Congress, writers, artists, and, of course, the President. My student, who is African-American, was thrilled by the experience. Ten days later, back in a small town in rural Vermont, he was purchasing gasoline for his car when a group of white men drove up and started shouting racist epithets at him, both offending and frightening him. He immediately jumped in his car and drove off, but was shaken by the experience. Notable is the juxtaposition: to be a guest at the White House, where he was treated with respect and dignity as part of a select and honored group, and shook hands with President Obama, and then ten days later subjected to ugly racial harassment and threat. How quickly dignity can be granted