Ghazzal Hammad - Assignment 9

 I'm not sure if this is the issue that I care about most in the world, but it is definitely a big one for me: racism. I know that sounds like a basic answer, but it is truly an issue that I care about. I talked about this a little bit in my last blog post, because I discussed why people's neglect towards issues that don't affect them was an annoyance of mine. This is something I see a lot when it comes to the issue of racism. It is just bizarre to me that in 2020, racism still exists -- not only systemically, but also in communities. Growing up as a person of color and a minority in a really small town in southern Kentucky, I was always looked at differently anywhere I went. In school, people would make fun of my culture and make rude comments about my parents (that I will refrain from mentioning). Whenever I went out in public, people would essentially gawk at my family and I. I guess in a place that has 97% white population, this shouldn't be that surprising.

 However, this isn't even really the type of 'racism' I am talking about. I'm referring more to systemic racism. A lot of people will argue that America isn't systemically racist and that our country treats everyone equally, but I think a lot of evidence has shown otherwise. Obviously, there is the issue of police brutality, but that isn't even the tip of the iceberg. There's also the issue of being turned down for jobs because of the color of your skin, or getting worse service in restaurants and stores because you're not white, or schools choosing whether or not to accept students solely because of their race. This is an issue I could seriously argue about forever. Unfortunately, it's harder to argue with people about this, because a lot of people haven't experienced these problems firsthand; as a result, they don't believe it is really that much of an issue.