A spike in racism and fearmongering against minorities, especially immigrants is ramping up exponentially. It’s exactly what I predicted and deeply dreaded.
History is repeating itself
If you are familiar with world history, and this include some disturbing chapters in US history, which include racism and discrimination. These divisive tactics are also well documented since ancient times. You would hope that being on the latter months of 2024 this situation would be resolved by now. Sadly, it is not, and what makes it worse is the fact that currently these tropes have been normalized to the point that many people don’t even bat an eye about how unhinged it has gotten.
On my Today in America | 22 JUL 2024… article, upon incumbent President Biden dropping out of the Presidential race and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris, I talked about how this increase on overt racism was not a matter of if but when. Although most Americans are not racists, there are many who are very proud of their prejudices. Certainly, there were racist overtones before Kamala became the Nominee, but these tropes have been emboldened exponentially since that day by many conflicted people across the country.
This is an uncomfortable conversation most people prefer not to have… but the truth is that for those who are affected by this – the prospect of a Trump second presidency is terrifying. At this point in the presidential race there is no shortage of people who happen to be supportive of Trump expressing extremely dehumanizing tropes, allegations, and accusations against other people because of their heritage. And some of those tropes and allegations are coming directly out of the mouths of the top of the Trump-Vance ticket.
This level of dehumanizing discrimination has resulted in a mass exodus of Republicans voting Blue for the 2024 election, with a record number of Americans endorsing Kamala Harris for President regardless of their political party affiliation. And surprise – many MAGA folks who are supporting the Trump-Vance ticket are unaware of the racially charged rhetoric being spewed by Trump and Vance pretty much every other day.
A very glaring example is the false and racist accusation Vance made against Haitian immigrants who are working legally in Ohio. The accusation if you did not remember is (as in still happening as I type this) accusing Haitians of eating pets. This narrative is not only dehumanizingly sinister, but unsurprisingly it is also false. Yet former President Trump perpetuated this lie during the only presidential debate he had the cojones to be in the same room with Kamala Harris – who by the way wiped the floor with him. Likely why he refused a subsequent debate.
On my article “This Hate rhetoric MUST BE STOPPED!” I spoke in detail about this situation. And not even a month after I wrote that article, I had to revisit this grim topic. It is heartbreaking and extremely disturbing. Because as terrible as it was back then, it has gotten exponentially worse… just as I dreaded.
Understanding the hate mindset
Understanding does not mean “agreeing with.” I strongly condone hate and dehumanizing rhetoric. I’ve written about this extensively in the past, and it is worth repeating. A lot of people who are being prejudicious against others do not realize they are being bigoted. And further, THEY will feel insulted if you point that to them, despite the fact they already deeply offended the other person. If you know you know.
A lot of times, for us minorities we just bite our lip when we encounter this type of degrading situations (and it is usually quite often) and “try to not make it a big deal out of it” in order to spare the offender the fact they just spewed something that might not even register in their minds as insulting. Let me tell you that is masking, and it is very taxing on us. In that article I explained this situation in detail.
However, as bad as that situation was before, it has gotten a lot worse. I’m very concerned because there is no shortage of people who don’t seem to understand how volatile racism is getting in America. Particularly as we are getting closer to the presidential election in less than a month (at the time I’m typing this). This is a very sobering realization, because I’ve seen this before abroad. What it is even more disturbing is that there are few minorities who do not realize what is going on – yet this situation affects them directly regardless.
I know it sounds counterintuitive. But let me explain how this happens. When things seem normal for a long time – for example, in the USA there was at least a semblance of harmonious diversity and inclusivity sometime after the late 60’s, a few years after the end of the Jim Crow era. By then the underlying divisiveness was camouflaged. In other words, those racial tensions might not be said to a person’s face – but they are being said as they turn their back in the past few decades. I’ve seen it, I’ve called it out, and even had been accused of being too sensitive whenever I’ve called somebody out for describing a person with a bigoted trope.
I want to reemphasize that most Americans are not bigoted, and that they are wonderful people all around, regardless of their skin color or heritage. But there are a few who are indeed bigoted, and some of them will look very polite from the outside, and even “caring” – until you heard them spew very incendiary epithets behind another person’s back. Some people for one reason or the other see others as “subordinate” to them, and even have the people they deem inferior designated with labels such as underserving of some basic rights or equality. This is not only a situation that happen in some segments of the USA, in fact in some countries abroad that “social class” discrimination is the norm – even to this day.
For example, I’ve met people abroad who would not let a person they deemed of a “lower social class” to even look at them in the eye, they will talk down to them in condescending tones and will even assign them “lower quality” bathrooms, or even dinnerware (dishes, utensils, cups). There is a false tendency for some people to demean others because of where they happened to be born – either in privilege or unprivileged – and to me that is not only sad, but it should end. I see everybody as people, no matter how rich or humble, they all deserve being treated with respect and humanity.
“This Hate rhetoric MUST BE STOPPED!”
This is an article I was dreading writing because I predicted the USA was going to re-reach this point. I’ve always denounced hate speech, let’s heal the USA.
Racism is malicious ignorance
I want to reiterate that there is only one race when it comes to categorizing human beings. We are all the same species, that is why you can get a blood transfusion, be an organ donor, or interbreed with another person regardless of their skin color. The human species is actually the very same race. The pigmentation of our skin is based on the geography of our ancestry. The darker skin tones protect the person from the sun’s harmful rays. It’s really that simple.
For example, if a person with a light complexion goes to the beach, they could get a tan. But for some, with very-very light complexion, they might not tan at all and could actually get sunburn quite easily. Quick science here. The northern latitudes, or closer to the poles receive less continuous sun intensity and tend to have lower average temperatures year-round hence people tend to have lighter skin tones. That allows the skin to soak up as much sunlight as possible to remain healthy in that environment. But the closer you are to the equator via the tropics it tends to be a lot warmer based on several geographical factors, and that is why people tend to have darker skin tones. This protects them from the higher level of sun intensity.
Regardless of our skin tone, everybody deserves respect because they are human beings. We can definitely disagree with a person’s opinions and their decisions on the merits – but dehumanizing others just because they seem “different” it is always wrong. And spoiler alert, we are ALL minorities somewhere no matter what color skin you have. For example, in a Scandinavian country, a Hispanic person will definitely be a minority, but in a Hispanic country, a Nordic person would be the minority. When people are lucky enough to travel abroad, they will realize that the world is a huge and wonderful place with so much to discover.
Unfortunately, a lot of the people who tend to be racists, and by the way racism does happen all over the world – are also those who have less knowledge of the rest of the world. And no, traveling abroad alone does not mean that you’re “well-traveled” or that you have “worldly experience.” I’ve met tons of Americans who hated Italy when they visited, because “it was not like the USA.” And instead of exploring other cities, or the sites, they remained in the little American community – insulated from the rest of that society.
Understanding cultural diversity makes us better prepared to affront the inevitable changes, because like it or not, the world’s distances have shrunk. This is in part through technology, where you can have instant conversations with people from all over the world from your mobile device – essentially for free. Whereas that just a few years later, making a long-distance phone call would cost you a fortune. I remember having to pay almost four figures for a single phone call to a loved one when I was younger.
Learning more about the world is more attainable than ever before, but that is inconvenient to a certain group of people who thrive when we are divided, and they capitalize whenever we are fearful from one another. And the truth is that no matter where you are from, or what you look like we are more similar than different – even if you’re from a very different culture. We all laugh, we all have cried at some point, we all have gotten angry, emotional, happy, sad, pensive, excited, overwhelmed, etc. People are complex, but as I said there are many commonalities. Skin tone as I said before it is just that – a difference in complexion – that’s it.
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The US Immigration Process
I will be dedicating a full article to this important topic in the near future, because this is one of those wedge issues that are very much misunderstood, but also it has been weaponized for political theater at the expense of human suffering. Before we continue, I want to provide you the link to the official website to apply for ANY US visa, or naturalization process.
https://www.uscis.gov/
US Citizenship and Immigration services
Let me emphasize that for any immigrant, the process is never easy. No matter if a person is excited or looking forward to moving to another country, there are always a lot of factors that will be impossible to explain in full context – no matter how simple it might seem. But to give you an example, it is much like when you go for a visit to another country or to spend some time at somebody else’s home. You might be super happy and enjoy the visit – but there is a part of you that stays behind.
Now, imagine that you’re not leaving your home because you are excited about a leisure trip, but because you have no choice but to flee far away from your home – maybe forever. Leaving everything you ever loved behind, and pack what you can fit in a suitcase. And leave all your possessions, memories, and a huge part of your identity far away on the distance.
Let’s do a quick thought exercise to illustrate this point. Let’s say that you’re an American living in the USA, and you will be going on a leisure vacation trip to another estate in the same country. How do you prepare yourself to make it there? As you can ascertain from the get-go, there are many questions you will have to answer in order to conduct that trip. Here are a few:
- How am I going to get there? Drive, fly, train, etc.? If you choose the latter, then how you will get from the airport (or the station) to your temporary dwellings?
- Once you are there, how will you move around? How familiar are you with this area, the geography? Is it a guided tour or are you simply staying at a resort where you don’t go out?
- What are you going to pack with you? How much is too much? How little is too little? Do you have all the right clothes for the weather changes? Do you have to spend money to buy something there? Will your fashion sense make you stand up, or perhaps make you a target for pickpockets because you’ll look like a clueless tourist?
- How are you going to feed yourself? And by that I also mean how do you pay for food? Is it a credit card, do they accept them? Or do you need cash? How much can you afford per day as far as lodging, meals, transportation, and actually spending on “leisure activities.”
I’ll end it up there for now. But what you probably realized is that living out of a suitcase, for however long, will require planning, and resources, and a bunch of other things that you might or might have not anticipated you needed. And even though you’ve loved the experience (hopefully), you might be much happier to return home, where everything you worked so hard your entire life is waiting for you. Your bed, your shower, your toilet, your kitchen, your favorite couch… all those things you love, but you could not take with you and you missed all that when you were away – but you knew all that you cherished was waiting for you whenever you return home.
But what if you don’t have a home to return to anymore? What if the place you had all your memories, where you grew up, had all the possessions you’ve ever collected, and the place you put so much effort into turning into a home is now an extremely dangerous place where you’re threatened with your life and the lives of your loved ones… and because of that imminent danger you have to flee, and be able to fit anything you could fit and transport in a backpack. This happens to countless peoples south of our borders because of the increased violence.
What is the catalyst for this violence? I’m glad you asked. It’s in great part the consumerism of recreational illicit drugs. On simpler terms, there are consumers in the USA and Canada who will pay top dollar to get wired with these substances, and the people who suffer for the consumer’s high are these many communities who’ve found themselves in the crosshairs of drug lords among other criminal and opportunistic entities who happen to benefit from the suffering of these societies.
People in communities most people cannot point in a map, never mind pronounce are the victims of the greed and the “high” of consumers who get blitzed out of their minds with illegal substances. The true victims are the people who fear for their lives as their entire livelihood was destroyed after they worked sometimes for generations to build their home – the greed from others is what has taken everything away from them.
And for anybody who asks, “then why do they come only to the USA?” – Newsflash – they don’t, they go to other countries too. The problem is that some of those countries are also in the same situation where these criminal groups have also taken over their communities. Therefore, it becomes a geographical problem to resolve. That means the route will be a key factor.
For people in central America and Mexico, it makes more sense to travel north than to travel south. Why? Tons of reasons actually, but one of those is that the USA is always a more attractive option – because we (the USA) have more bilateral agreements with many other countries, and there is a larger possibility of labor, even though the immigration process is convoluted. And yes, some of that labor IS NOT the type of jobs regular Americans want to do.
Also, because going further south is even more dangerous. And I don’t mean only about criminals, and guerrilla groups, and other human beings. I am also talking about actual jungles full of all kinds of critters that can kill you or eat you. In other words, there is no way to travel by land in some segments of that route. And yes, the sheer distance is a lot greater. Not to mention that a lot of those countries are places where people are already fleeing away for the reasons I described above.
Yes, the US immigration process is not easy, and many ex-pats from other countries do find a new home elsewhere other than the USA. But how to get there is always the question. For example, in Europe you see a lot of migration from African countries from people fleeing those lands, and often taking their chances crossing the Mediterranean Sea. The USA is of course nowhere near the Mediterranean Sea, and that is why you would not see in our southern border the same type of migration from Africa than you see in Southern Europe.
The important question to ask is WHY are people fleeing their homeland in the first place? And if you guessed that it was similar in Europe than in the USA and Canada – as far as why people come over – you would be correct. To reiterate it is because of crime and drugs become a catalyst for violence in their home country. How does that start and perpetuate? Because people in the USA, Canda, and Europe have consumers of all those illegal drugs and other “services” – that are based on human exploitation. This includes prostitution, human trafficking, etc.
Yes, it is a very grim situation… and that is why some people would rather risk life and limb crossing dangerous areas such as the Mediterranean Sea in a small vessel to reach Europe from Africa, or cross many countries, and deserts to arrive to the USA southern border. This problem won’t ever be solved unless people who are consumers of whatever the criminal enterprises offer stop consuming… and paying top dollar for it. Although there is certainly drug traffic in the Americas and Africa, the price for either is a lot higher once it reaches the borders where people have a lot more money.
I’ll end this article by saying that we all have a part in making this a better world for everybody. It starts with education, and empathy. Like it or not, the world is united through commerce, through the internet, and what happens in a distant corner of the world is not just going to stay isolated forever. Out of sight, is no longer out of mind… everything comes full circle. We can be part of the problem, or part of the solution. The solution starts with expanding our knowledge of the facts. HLC