I write this article to spark a discussion. The more these issues are hidden, the less progress our community will make.

You'd think by 2017, race would no longer be an issue. You'd hope that people would no longer judge one another by the color of their skin or their choice of religion. You'd expect that racial slurs and words of hate would have been demolished by now. However, what we hope for and what we get are two very different things.

Recently, the students of Easthampton High School were outraged by a decision made by the administration. The situation began with numerous racial slurs made by a student at Easthampton High School, followed by a few people who stood up for themselves. Although violence is never the answer, that's what it came down to. And it was certainly justified. Severe punishments were put into place by administration BUT ONLY to the boys who fought back. Easthampton High School has so far made no punishments for the student who continues to express racism throughout the school community. Does it have anything to do with his dad being a police officer? Yes, probably.

I write as a peer. I write because this is an everlasting issue in the Easthampton School system. Children approach administration hoping for relief. And what do they receive? They are told to ignore it. They are told to be the bigger person. The children in the Easthampton School system are not being helped how they need to be.

Students marched to the city hall to express their concerns. To promote diversity and love. What did they receive? Threats of being arrested, and being suspended by the school. Isn't it funny how on the news our police officers and our administration said how much they "respected the students?"

I hope after reading this, you too can see the truth behind the situation. Many adults and many parents don't know what these kids are going through, they only know what the city decides to tell them. Many are seeing this as an inconvenience, and an over-exaggeration. I, however, see this as hope. I see it as love within a community of students who do not intend to give up until they're being treated equally. I see an administration attempting to save their butts from looking bad. Maybe instead of condoning the choices made by our authority figures, we should stand up as a community and stand behind these students.

It's inspiring to see a group of students spread so much hope through their community that they can inspire hundreds of students to walk out of school in protest. It's chilling to hear the voices of Easthampton shouting "No hate, diversity is great." It is more than just a little incident; it's a problem that will continue to happen if people don't join against the fight of racism within the Easthampton community.

Many people don't realize that numerous students went the school about these problems months in advance before this incident, and multiple times as well. Maybe if our school had done something about it, this wouldn't be the severe issue it is right now. And THAT'S what this is about. It's not about skipping class, it's not about wasting time, it's not about fighting, or who's right and who's wrong. It's about our school system, and the things they lacked in doing up to this point.

Maybe you aren't being racist, but doing nothing about the situation is condoning the behavior.

Don't do nothing. #NoHateHere