When Fall brings more than the cold

October 7, 2016

When Fall brings more than the cold

With the arrival of fall, not only did mother nature bring the chilly atmosphere but also the ignorance out of more people. I used to love fall; the pumpkin flavored drinks, the dark colors, the heavy clothing, and Halloween. But the last couple of years have been disappointing as I am see more blatant disregard for other cultures. With the pressing issues of the pipeline affecting my brother and sisters in North Dakota, I feel like more people are voicing their racist comments more than ever.

Just recently my friend told me about an incident that took place at a football game at the University of Arizona. His friend (so a third source) was met with a group of racist students from a fraternity and sorority. During the game they were making jokes and being immature and he asked them to settle down because he was sitting behind them. Words were exchanged and he was called a “desert n****.” An African-American woman sitting by him poured a drink down the girl’s back who shouted that at him and they left shouting: “Start the Pipeline! Start the Pipeline!” Of course, the incident was documented but as of now nothing has been done against the students. So, it’s bad enough that we are seen as being crybabies when others are clearly being irrational. But things like that just open up a whole new level of low. The students of course also shouted, ‘All lives matter’ to the woman who poured the drink, and there was no need for that. I had to ask, is this really in Arizona? Like did we flash back a few decades? The audacity!

My friends are pretty diverse, and when I tell them of such occurrences they often think I’m exaggerating, because people can’t really act like that, can they? YES! Then they begin to question why they haven’t experienced the things I’ve heard or seen, or experienced first hand. That’s when I have to remind them that just being a light-skinned Latino or African-American is a privilege itself. I know it’s only going to get worse as we approach Halloween as well. If October were Monopoly’s ‘Go’ and the extra $200 you collect passing were the goodies fall brings; I’ll pass.