I often get flamed for my writings. My point of view runs counter to many people. That’s how it should be though. What suprises me is what people react to and how they react. I hope that this column will catch the attention of the few of you who are actually willing to say something about an issue that people are scared to deal with; racism. Certainly in today’s society, one of the biggest obstacles for our species so overcome is that of racism. It’s been around since the beginning of mankind and is here with us on the Nicholls State campus. I know, why am I bringing this up now at a time when racism is just the least of our problems on the side of the war against terrorism?
The morning of the Grambling game, walking out of Long Hall was like walking onto Bourbon Street on a Friday night. (Well maybe not that bad) The streets were filled with Grambling fans rushing in for the mornings game, tailgating and just having plain old fashioned fun. I began my walk to the band room for practice and as I got closer to the area, the more people I saw. The 10-K Run was going on at the time and the runners seemed frustrated because of the incoming traffic. One lady yelled to the runner in the back of her, “these black people are turning this place into a zoo.”
I wasn’t really upset about the comment, more surprised than anything. It was one of those things that I wished that I wouldn’t of heard. But that was nothing compared to what was said during the game by students who decided to openly speak their thoughts.
“Look at their cheerleaders acting like the monkeys they are,” one student holding his Nicholls ID. said. “This isn’t Africa, why are they hopping around like that.”
I am not one to pay attention to ignorant comments like that, but for some reason, I was extremely bothered. If that wasn’t enough for the day, an argument broke out in the stands because of a comment that a Nicholls fraternity member made that included the words “kick their black asses Nicholls.”
Throughout the day, it seems that our campus had become segregated. After the game, conversations became violent as many Nicholls students and fans made rude and obscene comment s to the Grambling fans. It was horrific and in a sense really depressing. The “true colors” of people really showed that afternoon.
The Grambling game was probably one of the biggest things to ever come to Nicholls. For the first time in a very long time, the stadium was sold out (mainly with Grambling fans which doesn’t say too much about the school spirit here). They were our guests who almost all traveled from six hours away to get here, and they were treated like foreigners from another planet by the Nicholls students.
If you are not bothered by this, then you probably have been a contributor to this form of ignorance and hate. Wake up Nicholls State University! It is time to address this problem that lurks on every corner of the campus. As hard as it is to realize, it is here and it will continue to get worse if people do not admit that it is a problem.
This is just an example of one incident, but as soon as I started telling people about this article, I heard stories that seemed so unreal, or at least that’s what I wanted to believe. This problem has been the cause of many acts of violence on college campuses around the country. Though our campus seems at peace right now, there are many who are hurting right now because of something that was said to them or something that was done to them.
My advice to all of you who have problems with those of another race; deal with it. There is nowhere in this country that you can go and not see a person of another race. That ignorance and stupidity that rests in your mind needs to stay there or you might just want to stay inside for the rest of your life.
It just so happens that people are different. Although others may disagree, to me, racial barriers do not exist in reality. If anyone still believes in racial differences, perhaps you still do not understand man’s equality and love.
The simple truth is that these opinions on racism are traditions, which are nothing more than a “formula” laid down by the experiences of elder people. As we progress and time changes, it is necessary to reform these “traditions”. It is now time to stop following the formulas of fear-mongers.
This is not whining. This is the reality of what is happening in this country today. We as a nation are unwilling to confront the lack of true equality and diversity in our society, and we will ultimately pay a terrible price for it.
The purpose of this article is not to stir any conflicts, but to make you all aware of what’s really going on your campus. The more you are aware of a problem, the better you will be able to handle it when it arouses in your life. I am a guy who gets along with pretty much anyone that I meet. I have absolutely no hatred or anger towards the way people choose to live their lives. But I do hate the fact that people actually do not believe that this problem doesn’t exist.
