As most of you know, there have been a lot of hate crimes directed at Asian Americans all across the country as tensions rise with our Asian neighbors. Now I’m not one to rant about politics, but I have to say that these actions against each minority group are completely unacceptable and un-American.

I think these certain people only see the color of someone’s skin and or facial structure and automatically correlate this to a foreigner and result to violence. The sad part is, this is white supremacy at its finest and goes back to the dawn of our country. 

America was founded on slavery and systemic racism, and as much as we want to believe it’s gone, it’s still everywhere. Slavery was abolished on January 31, 1865. That’s only 155 years ago. Think about it. Somebody’s great grandparents could have been slaves; that’s how close we still are to this issue and, it’s peeked its head out again with recent clashes.

I’m a firm believer that violence is never the answer and that issues can be solved diplomatically. I think that’s where I have such a strong appreciation for education and what it brings to light for many people. Knowledge is, in fact, power and I think in this case the more someone knows the better off they will be. My hope is, as generations continue and they learn about our past, they’ll reflect on that dark time period and continue to try to be better.

I’m a minority myself and I’ve faced discrimination, but that doesn’t mean I’ve lost hope in our nation. I mean, look at what we’ve accomplished in that 155 years. Yes, we’re still not perfect, and yes, we still need to fight our good fight, but America, as dark as it might seem, is a beacon of light for so many people in the world. 

We have to lead by example and show that we love our neighbors and people that come to our country that want to find a better life and not discriminate against them.