Kevin+Z's+OpEd+Article

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"Racism in Genera" by: Kevin Zablocki

One of the few things that really bother me is racism. Unfortunately, racism, even today, is still a pretty big problem in this world. I’m glad that racism doesn’t rear its ugly head in the area I live in, maybe it is for that reason why I feel the way I do. But racism gets me really frustrated, maybe because people degrade others despite the fact that they have the near exact same genetics as everyone else. The truth is that, while there should be some pride in heritage and family history, we are really one race: the human race. We live in the 21st century, and humanity is so technologically and intellectually advanced, but hatred based on skin color or bloodline is still prevalent. We, in the United States, had our racist problems taken care of, so some might believe racism is dead. But there are some big examples of racism in this world. A few years ago, a football (soccer) match was being played in Spain. Barcelona vs. Real Zaragoza. On Barcelona was the star player Samuel Eto’o. At the time, he was one of the best in the world. The opposing team’s fans began to make racist chants along with monkey chants. When approached with the problem, the game ref said the crowd behavior was “normal” and let it continue. The next year, the same fans did the same exact thing. Years later, in 2010, Eto’o was in a different team in a different country, but the same exact thing happened. Why did Eto’o deserve this? Did he commit a crime? Did he spit on the Spanish flag? Did he cheap shot the home team’s favorite player? No. He was a different skin color. So that entitles that entire stadium to flare up in rage of hatred, while the officials let it fly, encouraging them to continue. 2010 wasn’t two hundred years ago, it was last year; racism is still prevalent in several European countries, those considered to be the most civilized. But racism is huge all over the world. Every group considered a “race” has its own problems with racism. That’s right. Hispanics, Asians, Blacks, Whites, everyone. Overall, racism is just an excuse to make you feel better about yourself. I feel sorry for racist people, because they must have some pretty low self esteem. I really hope people will get the idea that physiologically, we are equal. I look forward to the day where everyone will live in “… a nation where they [people] will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character ”(MLK).