Racism is a touchy issue for most people. Even in this day and age, talk of racial inequality in America makes people very uncomfortable — but it‘s a fact.
Racism is deeply rooted in our society and always has been. In many ways, the positive gains made by workers, minorities and women during the Civil Rights era have evaporated, and issues of race, sexual orientation and discrimination have once again polarized our nation. Racism is arguably worse now than ever before.
The Constitution requires that people of all races and creeds be treated equally under the law, yet prejudice and racial injustice is still a daily reality in America. Since the election of President Barack Obama, racial tension has certainly peaked, but our country’s disgraceful record of hatred and intolerance toward one another is a matter of historical record.
From the Native American genocide and the dark days of slavery to the current wars on ‘terror’ and ‘drugs,’ we have little to be proud of. Our Muslim brothers and sisters are the latest targets of oppression and humiliation, following 9/11.
We must be vigilant in the face of prejudice wherever it rears its ugly head, and we must be willing take action to end it. Some people try to deny that racism still exists, or they try to rationalize it and even justify it in some cases. Others claim that the only racism still to be found in this country is “reverse-racism” against whites. A truly bizarre concept if there ever was one.
Skimming through some of the readers’ comments posted on the Daily Lobo website, it’s obvious there are a lot of frustrated, intolerant and truly hateful people in the University community.
The country is more divided than ever on a wide range of issues (with racism being near the top of the list), and UNM is no exception. Any reasonable person can see that things are not going to get better any time soon.
In these bleak economic times, popular anger and frustration need an outlet, and that’s when the finger-pointing begins. We are now a nation at war with itself. Does the concept of ‘divide and conquer’ ring a bell? That’s where we’re currently at. We are divided and we have been conquered.
One would think that in such a diverse, multi-cultural state as New Mexico, we could have at least learned to tolerate each other and accept our differences. I came out here with my wife almost 20 years ago with that hope in mind, only to be disappointed time and time again.
Things are no different here than anywhere else in the country — they just happen on a smaller scale. We may not have inner-city ghettos or race riots as such, but there are still far too many examples of injustice and discrimination in our fair state.
Albuquerque has been in the national news lately due to the rash of fatal police shootings by the Albuquerque Police Department, and many people in the community think that racism is a contributing factor. APD’s foot-dragging on any outside investigation hasn’t helped to instill confidence in the department’s ability to police itself. A resolution in favor of a Department of Justice investigation was passed unanimously last week by the Albuquerque City Council, despite the objections of Mayor Berry and the APD.
UNM is not immune to racial tensions, either. We’ve had our share of shameful and embarrassing episodes over the years. Following an incident in December of 2000, the Sigma Chi fraternity had its organization charter revoked when members put a swastika made of masking tape on the car of a black student who had illegally parked outside the frat house, across the street from Dane Smith Hall. They also put chewing gum in her keyhole and left a threatening note on the window. Six years passed before Sigma Chi regained its charter.
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In 2007, A UNM student, Peter Lynch, tore down the Mexican flag that was hanging in front of Scholes Hall and ripped it to shreds.
Lynch, a veteran, was convicted of a misdemeanor charge of criminal damage to property and sentenced to a six-month deferred sentence. The judge also ordered Lynch to replace the flag, perform 48 hours of community service and complete an anger management program.
Lynch admitted to tearing the flag down, saying he acted out of “patriotism” and that he became enraged because the Mexican flag wasn’t accompanied by a United States flag. Lynch denied any racist motives in the incident. It turned out that the UNM Army ROTC had left the Mexican flag flying by itself for three days by mistake.
Earlier this year, the Daily Lobo ran a cartoon portraying President Obama in an unflattering light. African American Student Services asserted that it was a racist depiction of the President in a parody of a scene from Disney‘s “The Lion King.” It showed Obama as Rafiki — a monkey in the film — holding the severed head of Osama bin Laden in place of Simba. The Daily Lobo’s Editor-in-Chief Chris Quintana took full responsibility for the piece and publicly apologized.
In September, the Daily Lobo was once again accused of racism for using the term “illegal immigrants” in a photo caption on the front page. Referring to Gov. Susana Martinez’s new legislation, which would “ban illegal immigrants from possessing driver’s licenses” inspired a petition to the Daily Lobo, accusing it of demeaning immigrants and of having “ … a history of racism, including generally the invisibility (sic) in covering our events and issues and more often derogatory representation of people of color when we are featured in the student newspaper.” An odd claim, considering that everyone involved in creating the story was Hispanic.
Clearly, if we are going to argue over semantics and word usage, then we’re missing the bigger picture here. When Americans are willing to attack each other over such (arguably) trivial matters, then we‘re essentially taking the bait and allowing ourselves to be distracted from focusing on the really important problems related to institutionalized, ongoing racism. Racial strife threatens to destroy our very existence as a nation and it is the responsibility of every one of us to ensure that doesn‘t happen.
UNM has an incredibly diverse student population, but in many ways these groups remain in separate camps. We need to encourage more interaction, communication and cooperation across campus to help create a better future for everyone. If we work together to help create empathy and equal opportunities for every single person, we can save ourselves. If not, we’re doomed.
