In times of crisis, the true personality of an individual shines through the shadow of daily life. During this time of national crisis, Americans are forced to show their true colors: those who care are caring a lot, those who love are loving a lot, and those who hate are hating a lot.
Last Monday morning, while returning to campus from the Lewis Center, I noticed somebody waving at me and shouting something. I took off my headphones and I heard the man say, “I hope you enjoyed blowing up the World Trade Center.”
“What was that?” I asked, to which he responded, “I hope they hunt you down and kill you.”
I was shocked. I have faced racist comments and discrimination my whole life, but I have never seen anyone stare at me with eyes so full of hate. This man truly wanted me dead. His verbal attack lasted for several minutes and he issued many of the all too familiar phrases I have heard throughout my life, such as, “Get out of my country, nobody wants you here.” “Who let you into this country, you worthless immigrant?” “All of your kind should be shot.” “You can’t even speak English.”
I have good reason to believe that this man was a WU graduate student, and the thought that this kind of ignorance can exist within the community of one of America’s top universities frightens me.
The ironic aspect of this particular attack is that I am Mexican-American, I was born in Wisconsin, I haven’t been able to speak Spanish since I was 8 years old, and if I have any accent at all, it’s a Minnesota accent. Ya Ssre. Someone would have to really stretch the imagination to think I was Middle-Eastern.
This attack was not about my looking Middle-Eastern, it was simply about my being brown and being hated for it. I am by no means the darkest skinned Mexican around, but I am certainly brown enough. I am brown enough to be hated, brown enough to be mistreated, and brown enough to be randomly attacked by a bigot.
A lot of people seem to think that this rash of violence towards Middle-Easterners (or anyone of a middle shade of brown) is just a result of the recent terrorist attacks. The idea that this kind of hatred can be unleashed solely because of one incident is a very ignorant one. The man who attacked me has hated me, and those who look like me his entire life. Nobody becomes racist overnight.
If the people responsible for the WTC attacks had been British or German, would the popular consensus of Americans be to bomb their entire country indiscriminately? Would blonde haired, blue-eyed people be getting death threats? If the terrorists were Italian, would Tony’s be getting daily bomb threats? Would The Hill be surrounded by people screaming for the heads of innocent Italians?
People of color have always been considered second-class citizens in this country. After the civil rights movement many people seemed to believe that racial hatred had begun to subside. Racism and ignorance did not lessen; people simply stopped openly voicing their hatred for people of color. The attack on the World Trade Center has simply given people an easy excuse to publicly voice their dislike for those of color. The recent wave of racism and hatred has always been within the heartbeat of America, it is simply easier for people to voice their ignorance today. As the fa‡ade of tolerance and equal rights collapses in this country, the true feelings of its citizens are becoming apparent.
I have faced verbal attacks, physical attacks, and discrimination my entire life simply because of the color of my skin. Even after the shock from Tuesday’s attack subsides, I will continue to face similar attacks for the rest of my life. My simple plea to everyone is to not allow the recent incidents of terrorism become an excuse for hate. Let us have peace in this world for just one day. Let us have tolerance for those different from us for just one day. Let us have compassion for all for just one day. Above all, I beg of you, please do not judge someone by physical appearances. Get to know the man or woman behind the skin color.