The comment section: It can be a place to connect with likeminded others or a place to throw out the last bit of hope for humanity that you are clenching onto.
Unfortunately, I feel the latter after reading the comment section of the Grace student being called the ‘N’ word.
Dismissive comments, questioning the validity of the note, and downplaying the severity of the word are rampant. This young man chose to come here. He picked us and our community to attend school and start his adult life. He did not come here to be degraded, dismissed, questioned and harassed.
The response to this event is arguably more disgusting than the act itself. Having grown up here, I’ve seen our community become more diverse and attract young students and professionals from different cultures.
Watching them be ousted is heartbreaking. We are dropping the ball and we must do better. How would you feel if you were made to feel like you were less? That you didn’t belong because of something you cannot control?
How would you feel if people collectively dismissed your feelings, told you that you were overreacting, and that it really isn’t that big of a deal? This can happen with any variable, but when it happens with race in 2017, it stings even more.
