Los negros son feos, los judios son raros, los paraguanos son vagos, los peruvianos son ladrones. Yesterday, I was practicing talking about hypothetical situations in spanish (for the exam) and I used the example "If I were Michelle Obama..." to which my host mom cut me off to say "but Michele Obama is black". If there's one thing I can't tolerate, it's intolerant people.
I realize that BsAs is a multicultural city and therefore there are bound to be class/race conflicts, but the amount of blatantly racist comments and rigid stereotypes i hear on a daily basis from my profesor, host parents, newcasters is astounding.
I think this is a product of lack of education and desperation. If your neighbor takes your job, you're probably going to hate him, and, if you don't feel so god about yourself, noting that at least youre better than your neighbor will make you feel better than something! I think that lack of resources ($) makes people desperate, and looking for someone to blame, hate, feel better than. In a nation insecure about its 2nd world status and still struggling to overcome a financial meltdown a decade ago, it seems logical that racism would flourish. And i am here to testify that it is.
It's been quite an experience to live with and care about people who think and talk like this. It's a lot easier to mentally place racists way over there...in the south...or on TV...and to think of myself as being so distinct from them. But putting a face on the "racist", living with them, and loving them has reminded me that racists are people too, even "good" people. When I hear such comments coming from the mouths of , for example, my host mom, I want to explain to her the basic concept that the existence of distinct races is a mere mental construct, a skin color and no more. But I know she can't just snap out of her racist mind. She's been trained since birth to think this way, and her entire reality is this way.
And that's the suckiest part about racism, it's really hard to change. Which makes me almost feel sorry for them. They clearly weren't educated and/or feel bad about their own situation if they resort to racist thinking. How sad.
I'm not trying to say that racism is okay or acceptable, just that living here has confirmed racism is not a product of an evil heart, but an unfortunate upbringing. (not that i really thought it was an 'evil heart' before, but you know what i mean.
On the bright side, all the youth i talk to are ashamed of the racist commments of their elders. Hope for the next generation? I hope so!
It'll be nice to return to hippie wonderland Sebastopol where we have nothing to fight about and all the hippies get along with everyone, as long as that person is a hippie.....
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