Diversity, Culture, and American Education

If voting an African-American president into office has proven anything, it has shown that America is still two nations roughly divided around the Mason-Dixon line. Today we are fighting a cultural American Civil War between the immigrants of yesterday and the immigrants of today.

After moving to Kentucky where tax-paying citizens are forced to homeschool their children because of blatant racism in the public schools, watching seas of homogeneous "tea parties" protest imagined injustices instead of real American injustices, and listening to the barely disguised violent rhetoric of political figures like Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh, I have come to the conclusion that waiting for the government to stand up for immigrants and people of color is like waiting for second coming of Christ. You believe it will happen, but you will probably die before it does.

So what can be done? Anyone who believes that they will be unaffected by the growing hatred in some communities against immigrants and people of color will soon find themselves drowning in a sea of violence propagated by the media and political moguls. So what can be done?

1. Educate yourself.
Why? Educated Americans typically earn more than those who only earn a GED or high school diploma. In the United States money = power. If you do not believe me, then look at our Congress and politicians. How many of them are from the upper socioeconomic echelons of society? Is it any wonder why they couldn't care less about what is happening in the American trenches?

2. Educate your children.
Don't allow your children to fall prey to the cultural stereotypes plaguing them in the media. How many television shows propagate the idea that people of color are uneducated, in gangs, and only capable of being the cleaning staff in upscale hotels? Encourage your children to become lawyers, teachers, doctors, engineers, politicians, computer software engineers, and other professionals. Get involved in their lives.

3. Form homeschooling groups.
If you are unfortunate enough to live in a community with violent failing schools or blatant racism, then stop trying to fight a failing system and create a homeschooling group with others from your community. Homeschooled children that are involved in social groups often surpass the education of students in public schools both socially and academically. Your child will grow up feeling proud of his or her heritage and will be better prepared for college.

4. Vote.
Never miss an election. Always vote and encourage others in your community to vote.

5. Write in English and your native languages.
Fight the current dialogue and change it by writing. Create blogs, write screenplays, post videos online, write e-zines, self-publish books, write to the editor, write to your politician, and get involved in the dialogue. One reason that fear-mongering "Main Street" has misconceptions about immigrants and people of color is because we have not flooded mainstream media with our own literary and artistic output. We have been content to stay pigeon-holed and separate, congratulating each other. Get involved in the mainstream and soon "Main Street" will look like "Every Street".

6. Run for office.
Even if you lose the election, you can make a difference by running for office. Help Congress and your local government reflect the new face of America.

7. Form friendships.
Don't be content to stay in your own cultural community, even if you are only one of a handful of your own culture in your neighborhood. Branch out. It is difficult for someone to hate someone that they know intimately. Cherish and grow your friendships and break stereotypes by your everyday living.

8. End the stereotypes.
Fight the urge to personify stereotypes propagated by the media. Just because you are Latino, African-American, Asian, Indian, African, Middle Eastern, Caribbean, or whatever culture does not mean that you have to become what is forced upon you by images, television, and film.

9. Report injustice.
Even if you cannot report injustice to the local authorities, you can report it to the world. Join the international online community and let everyone know what is happening in your hometown. If you have to do it anonymously for safety, then do so, but still get the information out there. There are numerous websites, blogs, and online communities that can help you get the information out there.

10. Be visible and be proud.
Yes, I know that it is almost impossible to be invisible if you are the only Latino at work or the only African-American student in your class or your accent betrays your heritage. Be visible. Be proud. One of the benefits of growing up in South Florida as a Latina was that I never felt ashamed of my Hispanic heritage. Never. Why? Almost everyone in my community either was related to or good friends with other Latinos. It is difficult to be racist when your abuelos are originally from Colombia, your grandchild is part Korean, or your significant other is from Haiti.

I wish I could say that we have come a long way from the Civil Rights Era. America is a severely wounded nation, and we need to do our part to heal it before the wound becomes fatal.