In today’s world, it amazing that racism still exists.
There are so many different cultures in a family’s background. The great-grandfather who was full blood Cherokee that married the white woman. The 1/2 Cherokee, 1/2 white grandfather who went on to marry a girl who was of Spanish descent. Their son grows up to marry an African-American girl. And their daughter grows up and goes to off to college in Italy, where she falls in love with a boy of Italian descent. The further you go back into the generations of your family, the more different cultures you discover.
The African American people were horribly abused in the days of slavery. The American Indians were stolen from and slaughtered, and moved from place to place as if they were cattle.
Not only is race discriminated against, so are religious beliefs. Also included are sexual discrimination against women as a whole and homosexuals as well.
Today, different cultural holidays are celebrated throughout America. We have Black History Month. A month where African Americans gather to celebrate and share their strength and pride in who they are. We have Black Entertainment Music Awards, and scholarships for young black Americans.
We celebrate and recognize Spanish holidays, as well as giving out awards for the gifted and talented Hispanic youth of today.
The American Indian descendants are given land and monetary compensation to this day for crimes committed against their people so long ago.
All of these cultures should be celebrated. Those who were treated so horribly in our nations history should be well compensated. And all of America should be better educated of the important roles all cultures played in making America what it is today. The land of the free, and the home of the brave! Where all people should be created equal and given equal opportunities. I fully believe in what America stands for, for all people. However I do feel like there was one culture left out, when it came to the right to stand up and say they are proud to be who they are. The “whites”.
If a white person were to stand up in a crowd today and say, “I am proud to be white!”, they would automatically be labeled a racist. If a scholarship were to come out for the “gifted and talented white youth of today”, that organization offering the scholarship would be putting themselves in the position to be sued for racism. A “White History Month” would just be ridiculous. It seems that every drop of blood we have had passed on us through different cultures should be reveled in, besides the white.
Where in all of our history, did white people have to stop being proud of being white? Where did it come about that you were racist if you wanted to celebrate in your white culture? Somewhere in the midst of all of the slavery and murder, there were good white people that stood up and said, this is not right. We must change the laws and set these people free. We must work to make all people equal as they should have been in the first place! Those people who had the strength and honor to stand up for what was right, should be honored!
When is it okay to start being proud of being white again? With so many different cultures in our own families background, I want my children to understand and be proud of every part of who they are. For they carry Native American and Irish blood, and they carry African American and White Blood.
