Granite falls is a very, very small town. Speaking as a student who has moved here in recent years, in my opinion, there are alot of situations and social norms that have set Granite apart from the rest of Washington. One of the biggest and most alarming social norms in such a small town is the acceptance of racial judgment and mocking. Over the last 100 years or so, America has gone through plenty of protests, cruel laws, and diversity changes to learn to accept others who are different through their background and color of their skin. However, in today’s society, racism is accepted as nothing but a joke to the younger generations. Things that are hurtful such as exclusion, name calling, and sardonic remarks and behavior are accepted and abused by so many people nowadays; some are a joke, and some genuine. While this happens everywhere to this day, it stands out more because any and everything goes around Granite Falls like wildfire.
Nowadays, it has become so normal to make inappropriate comments as such to where nobody can tell the difference between real and acting anymore. While acting this way is considered normal, or just being a teenager, teaching why it is wrong all of a sudden brands the topic as “sensitive” and “touchy”. Even through education we can see a prime example of this unfairness. African, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, and more history is lightly touched on throughout the school year, while leaving out many important details. Even though they do not go into these important histories, schools think that mentioning Martin Luther’s name makes the school “full of diversity”. As a racially mixed person myself, it is difficult to understand why it is considered too sensitive of a topic when it comes to defending and teaching about cultures that others do not know about.
One of the worst parts of this issue is the hypocrisy. As a student, I see the misuse of specific terms and jokes all the time. The question that comes to rise is; Why is racism among people not corrected, but those who stand against it or victims who speak about it get branded as bold and hostile? Nobody is allowed to take offense to anything anymore or else you get called a snitch, sensitive, a tattletale, and are branded as many other things. While there are multiple factors that partake in rude behavior as such, at the end of the day, anyone can control how they act and what they say. Racism is unacceptable in every shape, way, and form no matter who it is to or why it is said.
The reason this matters is because of how much it can affect someone’s life. Whether it is the abuser, the victim, or those around them. Even if it doesn’t matter to one person, there are always going to be children who follow after their parents and older siblings’ examples. The last thing that needs to happen is the even younger generations thinking that racial judgment and separation is “okay” or ”cool”. As humans, we cannot predict what others think about or how something affects each other, so there is no point in being disrespectful, not even if it’s a “joke”.
