Sunday, July 29, 2012

Smothered, Covered, and Chunked

At Waffle House, a local breakfast eatery, you can have your eggs served a few different ways.  A popular choice is to have your eggs served smothered and covered which makes for a delicious way to start your day.   I like my eggs served that way, but I don't like myself served that way.  Let me explain.

I was at a local garage sale the other day, and a few Hispanic families attended the sale.  They looked around and spoke Spanish to each other and spoke English to the ladies running the sale.    The families were polite, kept their kids in check, and left after making a few purchases.    Afterwards, one of the ladies commented, "Don't you just hate when those bunch of Mexicans come, acting like they don't speak English, trying to get the cheapest price?"   When asked this type of question in the past, I have always just remained quiet, not wanting to start a big debate.  This time, I said, " No, not really, I like to speak Spanish, and I like to talk with them."   She then proceeded to comment about how learning Spanish would be great so she could talk with the guys who do her landscaping or the construction workers that work nearby.  I left the sale, came home and seethed.  What I wanted to say, what I wanted to scream was this:
      *Not all Hispanic speakers are from Mexico
      *Everyone at a garage sale barters on price, not just those with a darker skin color
      *Spanish-speaking people are more than landscapers, construction workers, or servers at a taco
        restaurant

Because I am white, speak English, and live in a nice suburb, at times people assume that I, too, harbor racism against the Hispanics who live in my town.   The interaction at the garage sale was just one of many.    In many situations, instead of saying "bunch of Mexicans,"  people will comment on, "that bunch of illegals."  If I continue to stay quiet when these conversations arise, if I continue to cover and smother my perspective, then I am not being true to a people who are being discriminated against overtly and covertly every day because of their skin color and because of their primary language.

Why do I have a different perspective?  At the age of sixteen, I had the privilege to serve as a Rotary Club Exchange student in the Central American country of Costa Rica.  For ten months I lived with host families and learned Spanish, and experienced a different culture and customs.     Throughout my Rotary Exchange experience, I met hundreds of people from other countries, from Mexico and El Salvador to Spain and Australia.    Despite our different geographic locations and spoken languages,  we had much in common, from our love of our countries to our love of family and focus on education.     Over the next ten years,  I studied abroad again in college and then worked in higher education, visiting high schools in North/Central/South America.  

With the changing population demographics, one no longer has to travel abroad to interact with people of Hispanic or Latino origin.  According to the 2011 U.S. Census Bureau, there are 4% Persons of Hispanic or Latino Origin who live in Sumner County, Tennessee.   Of the estimated 163,686 population in this county,  approximately 6,547 Hispanic/Latino people reside here in Hendersonville, Gallatin, White House, and the surrounding areas that make up this county.   One of the best ways to overcome stereotypes about this ever-growing population of people is to educate yourself and your children.   Attend the Fall Fiesta at Volunteer State Community College.  Drive down to Nashville and experience the Celebration of Cultures in Centennial Park.   If you have a child in a Mother's Day Out, church pre-school program, or elementary after-school class with a Spanish curriculum,  go over the new vocabulary and the lessons with your children.    At the very least,  don't cover and smother your children with your negativity against Hispanic people.  


Monday, July 23, 2012

Someone Else's Problem

Someone Else's Problem

Living in the suburbs of Nashville,  my family resides in a nice neighborhood where the streets are filled with kids riding bikes, skateboarding, swimming at each other's pools, etc.   Parents stand outside talking with one another and, in general, a nice community feel prevails.  One little eight-year-old boy, however, lives in a home nearby where he is neglected.  Yes, his basic needs are being met-- food, shelter, clothing--, but he is starved for attention and for boundaries for his behavior.  His mother lets him stay out all day and late in the night, never checking on where he is or who he is with.  During the school year, he has been kicked off of the bus because of his foul language.   Without the gentle guidance of an active parent, he is slowly becoming the "problem kid," the one whom mothers are cautious to have their kids around.   Recently, when he became angry at a group of teasing boys, he ran home, grabbed a 6-inch Army knife and returned to "take care of things."   Luckily, one of the dads saw the exchange and took the boy home and talked with the adult at the home (the mom's boyfriend).    The adult blew off the incident, not wanting to deal with the child or with the responsibility;  he was dating the mom and the boy was unfortunately just a part of the deal.      This eight-year-old child is being neglected by his mom, but what is my responsibility?  What is my neighborhood's responsibility?  What is the school's responsibility?     It is so easy to chastise his mother,  shake our heads and mutter "bless his heart," and get on with living our lives and parenting our own children.  

This little boy, prone to temper tantrums and impulsive behavior, could potentially grow up into a teenager and an adult with those same anger tendencies.   Rather than seeing a future article in the newspaper because of his accomplishments in sports or academics,  he could easily make the news because of a violent attack at his high school or an attack in his community.

The headlines this week have detailed a merciless 24-year-old gunman killing innocent victims in a movie theater in Colorado.   This July also marks the one-year anniversary of the Oslo, Norway attack in which a far-right fanatic killed 69 people at a youth camp.    A killer isn't made overnight;  I wonder how many times along the way in their life did people notice that their behavior wasn't quite right.   How many times was the assumption made that they were someone else's problem?