Growing up in Utah, I didn’t face
an intense amount of public prejudice against those not of my race, most of
those in my community were Caucasian and Mormon. Maybe because of such a large
majority of similar people it made prejudices even more extreme, but personally
I never felt anything against those that weren’t like everyone else. That was
until I got to Jr. High and the beginning of High School and heard racist jokes
that everyone laughed about. Because everyone was saying them and having a good
time, I didn’t see anything wrong with it. That all changed in my last two year
of High School.
My high school wasn’t largely diverse, with
the majority Caucasian, we had a few black and a decent size group of Latinos. The greatest racial prejudice that I participated
in and that I witnessed first hand were telling racist jokes, even with those
of that same race. They would participate in and laugh with those who told
jokes against their own race. As a means to fit in with the crowd, jokes about
Mexicans or Black people, or Jews, or religion became popular and common within groups.
These jokes weren’t intended to offend, but subconsciously those races joked about made them feel ashamed and hurt even though they may be
laughing as well. That is where the segregation between “white Mormons”
and “everyone else” began. No one ever admitted it, but you knew it, you saw and classified people into their own groups. My high schools mission statement “a community of
one” motivated us to strive for unity, but if you asked students or those from
different schools, they would all agree that Timpanogos was a school made up of
cliques. Hispanics grouped together, band members grouped, religions grouped.
It became far more than just the typical high school stereotypes.
I am ashamed of myself for making
assumptions of others because of their race, living arrangement, and
traditions.
I didn’t like how I felt. I thought of how I would feel if I was criticized
for my beliefs or for the way I look if I was apart of the small minority. I
stood up for what I believed and when I heard a racist joke, I wouldn’t laugh,
I would ignore them or walk away. Several times I told the one telling the joke
to stop and that it wouldn’t do anything but hurt the other person. For some,
because they were so accustomed to telling these racist jokes and became numb
to how it would make others feel, my say didn’t seem to make a difference. But
for others, they stopped, and realized what destruction this was doing to those
around them, including their friends. If I could go back, I would take back
some of the jokes I said to my own friends who were of a different race. I realize now that everyone should be treated
equally, and that we should attempt to eliminate ANY racial prejudices even if
they seem harmless. Each race, ethnicity and color should be respected and
valued. There is no superior race. God loves all his children, so we should
too.
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