Monday 28 December 2009

Black and White - A Retrospective


One really random topic that succeeds in ticking me off is racial discrimination. It's infact so commonplace that people take it for granted. And it's also very usual how people express their disapproval but when you come to think about it, what can one genuinely do about it? Sure, we're concerned and we feel bad but ever thought about how the recieving end feels? Being Indian, we cannot actually experience either extreme which makes it a whole load easier to view the whole ordeal from a third-person perspective. We cannot shrug off the fact that it is those with a darker complexion who are given less preference in terms of employment, legal jurisdiction and the like. It is a very awkward and upsetting position and brings great shame and loss of pride and dignity to the recieving end, hence lowering their self-esteem for prolonged periods and convincing them that they cannot be as good as the white-coloured people, apparently. Why? All because of the fact that their skin is darker than the white-people. For years this inhumane act has been carried on and it is high time a full stop was put to this mentality. True, it has definitely decreased as compared to a century ago but there are definitely traces of the partial practice.

It is true that over the decades this partial practise has reduced but traces of it still exist. The possibility of getting a job, of being politically considered for a post and of the like, the whites have a larger preference than the darker-skinned men. It is unfair and a very awkward situation, as all of this discrimination and all this differentiation is caused merely due to the complexion of the skin.

Have we ever thought about how the person at the recieving end may feel? It is a combination of so many mixed emotions, primaraly sadness, anger and irritation. More than anything, the shame and the embarassment that comes along with being racially set apart is unbearable. But think about it. Is it really fair how these people live in a state of permanent shame and sadness just because their skin is dark? This all seems so stupid that I am almost ashamed to think that humans are considered the smartest among all animals.

Even recently, I'm sure you all have heard about the latest racial discrimination incident in Australia? Well, a group on college-going Indian students were brutally abused and one of them even died. All this because they have darker skin? Now does the clarity of the foolishness of the human race in this aspect increase? One of the many women I most admire is Rosa Parks. I'm sure not too many of you have heard of her but she is a black lady from the 20th Century who one day returned home from work during the era when Racial Discrimination was at its peak. When a white man asked her to stand because he needed the seat, she refused. This was observed as a turning point for the blacks and people hence began opposing this inhumane act. People's self-esteem and confidence increased and although it took decades, they finally got what they wanted. For this courageous act of defiance I admire this lady. I also admire Nelson Mandela who spent 27 years of his life in jail just to prove that black and white were not different colours when it came to skin.

We obviously feel bad and sad when we hear or see an act of racism but in theory, what can we do about it? We are concerned but how many of us have the courage to do what they did? None of us do. But we must try to stand for a right as an obligation to humanity.


It is hence a really large achievement that in one of the countries where racism was a very major legal issue, a black man has finally become a president and is in fact better than his white predecessors in terms of restoring the economy of the country and ensuring the prolonged happiness of the citizens of the United States of America. US President Barrack Obama has really shown that racism was an unnecessary mentality or way of thinking and that black-skinned people can be just as good, if not better, than their white counterparts.

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