I believe in no person being elevated over anyone else. I believe in EQUALITY. I believe in equality between men and women, Christians and Jews, Black and White, Mideastern cultures and western cultures, and LGBTQ+ and straight. Every race, gender, faith, sexual orientation, and religion being put on the same pedestal. From a young age, my parents have preached to me that we are all equal. We all bring something important to the world, whether somebody is a celebrity making millions of dollars, or a person living paycheck to paycheck.
While you may say Racism is declining in our society, we still see a racial prejudice from cops and the justice system towards African Americans. We still see them taking advantage of their economic situation and forcing African Americans into probation or putting them behind bars for crimes whites get a slap on the wrist and a fine. Let’s move onto the cops. It seems like an innocent African American is shot at a traffic stop by a cop two or three times a month. According to a FBI Report in 2012, 39% of people shot by the police while not attacking were black, while 46% was white. You may say I have a mew point after reading that, but let’s point out that as of 2012, African Americans account for 13% of the U.S. population. The fact that Racism still exists embarrasses me as an American.
I think my parents made it a priority to make sure I feel the way they do about equality. My grandparents, who I love to death, come from the generation where it was “normal” to hate minorities, different religions, and gay people. It still affects my family today. My aunt, who lives in New York City, is afraid to bring home her boyfriend to my grandfather because her boyfriend is an African American. My aunt’s boyfriend is a well-hearted and successful man, working as the lead murder detective for the NYPD, but that won’t matter to my grandfather.
I think my little sister has ran with this mindset even more than me. At just 17, she’s been on many prestigious panels to support LGBTQ+, Women’s rights, and justice reform. These issues are so important to her that she is going to college to become a lawyer to fight these issues. Sadly, I didn’t get the work ethic or the smarts she did, but I’m so proud of her for taking this and working to change the stigma from the inside.
I could go on for days about the issues that exist in America. They may not affect me personally, but it is something I believe needs to be exorcised from America. I’m gonna leave you all with a quote that I live by. “Until you treat everyone as an equal, you have no right to complain about the treatment you receive from anyone.”