One would think that living within a progressive society, such as the one that is portrayed within the United States, would foster a sense of equality, diversity and awareness, correct?
Unfortunately, that answer is incorrect. While our society has grown leaps and bounds in the last century, there are still many areas of society that operate on unequal grounds. Often times, minorities feel like the proverbial fly stuck in the milk (an individual who does not fit into the social constructs that society has deemed as the norm). They stand out no matter how much they try to blend in, no matter how much they try to not be seen and stick out. Everyone who is not considered part of the “pure” bloodline falls into this category. Isn’t it funny how the majority of people within the country are considered minority populations? Whether it is schooling (secondary or post-secondary), the workforce or simply day-to-day interactions, there are minority groups who are consistently treated differently based on their race, ethnicity, gender or sexual preference.
For example, look at the huge controversy that took place when the latest "Star Wars" film came out in theaters. Many individuals were outraged that a black actor was cast as the lead in the film. A twitter hashtag so wittingly named #BoycottStarWarsVII was created by the outraged individuals to try and stop other individuals from seeing the movie. According to the Daily Beast, one of the twitter responses read as follows:
“#BoycottStarWarsVII because it will be ghetto garbage.”
Did we flash back to the 1920’s? Did I miss that? Clearly I did. The fact that a film can be labeled as "ghetto garbage" simply because it hosts a black actor as the lead is purely ridiculous and unwarranted. This alone shows that we have a lot farther to go to get to that progressive society that many preach about. This is visible in other areas too, even universities.
A U.S. News article from this past November showed that boycotting can still be effective in many ways. When it was found that the former president of the University of Missouri, Tim Wolfe, did not appropriately handle many complaints of racism on the campus, the football team took a stand. They refused to play until justice was served and created ripples in the overtly discriminatory society that blends in well with our “progressive” nature. Eventually the president resigned from his post. This has been happening for a very long time, which tends to argue the point that the United States has become a progressive and equal country.
Living in a world where places of business aren’t reprimanded for putting up No Gays Allowed signs (a flash back to the Jim Crow Era), discriminating openly against minority populations and other acts of discrimination are tolerated makes us progressive? Hmmm, I’m not sure I necessarily want to live in that type of culture. We have come a long way in our society but we still have a lot of growing to do. Treating others how we want to be treated should be at the forefront of our minds; however, it is clear that this is not a concept everyone has learned. The moment when humanism is realized will be a day of reckoning as many will wake up to the fact that all humans are the same once you remove the outer layers.
