For a Better America

After going through nineteen years of school, there is more to the calculus I have learned, or the complexities to Machiavelli’s theory that it is better to be feared than to be loved from “The Prince”. Something greater exists in education, and that is humanity. Humanity is caring for every human being’s dignity, to provide everyone with an equal opportunity to excel and to be heard. It is our responsibility, as human beings, to mitigate others’ sufferings, and embrace each other, despite the religion, race, sex, beliefs, opinions, and other differences. This is what I have also learned in school. I have been taught the benefits of volunteerism, the responsibility to take care of one another. I am proud that I am not only educated in math, science, and literature, social science, but also in humanity. Because, an education without a compassion for humanity is an empty life, a hopeless, meaningless life. This is what I believe. And I also believe, that the U.S. education system is the one that gave me this drive, this quest to save humanity, to make a difference. I am willing to give it my all, and if I can touch even just a few people’s heart, that makes the difference, the whole experience worthwhile. I have been taught all of these things, that we have this responsibility to save humanity from self-destruction, to embrace knowledge because it is through knowledge and education that we will learn to think critically, and I have been taught that anything is possible, and dreams are achievable if one puts his or her mind to it. Up to my first year of college, I believed every word of it. After all, I live in America, the land of opportunity. Only, it is now that I realize, that the very America who once told me all these good virtues, is also the one responsible for oppressing the voice, the dignity, and the dreams of many.

I am not condemning America. I am very blessed to be here, to be given the many opportunities to learn, to love, to laugh, to celebrate life. I know, compared to other countries around the world, I am living the life. There are so many people out there who cannot even let their concerns heard to the government because of fear of being annihilated. There are people out there in poverty not because it is their fault, but because the government fails to serve the majority of its citizens. America gives people a good life. Here, people have enough to eat, and are not in dire poverty. The poverty in America is not the same as the poverty elsewhere. I only think that America could do more in helping people. It is not enough that people here are given jobs, and that we have the Bill of Rights on our side to protect us. America also needs to serve the invisible. Who is invisible in this country, one might say. And some others think, well, people are invisible for a reason, and they are not actively doing their part in being heard. This is the biggest understatement I have ever heard. Let me tell you who is invisible: the minorities. Let me redefine what minority means: it is anyone who has been short-changed and not given a fair chance to be competent. It is anyone who is willing to move forward faced with many barriers along the way. The truth is, at some point in life, we are all part of the minorities, the so-called outcasts in society. Instead of ignoring them, let us hear what they have to say. Let’s not deny the fact that invisibility is present, and although it is obscured and marred by false statements, we can’t help but know that beneath the lies and pretenses we create, there is a scar. An ugly scar that is too shameful. Let us take, for example, the time of segregation and oppression of African-Americans. Racism ruled the U.S., and almost everyone was caught up in this whirlpool. Today, we see the triviality of it all, and the foolishness of our faulty thinking. We wish to erase it from America’s past, because the fact that racism ruled us is shameful.

The thing about history is, once it has happened, it is written in the books with permanent ink. It cannot be removed. If a mistake is made, we are left with scars from the past lasting into the present, and sooner or later, we must concede, and we will be forced to show the scars at one point. Of course, a scar on the arm can’t be hidden forever. A sweater may cover it in the fall or winter, but what about in the days of summer and spring? Sooner or later, all scars will be revealed, and we will have to reluctantly admit our own faults.

This is why I am writing this: I do not want an America full of scars. I understand, scars are sometimes inevitable, and I know that perfection is impossible. After all, no one can get away in life with not even the slightest scar. I am asking, though, that we try our best to eliminate the potential scars that could be created.

Who wants to look back, and see that we have made a mistake twice? Once, okay. But the second one is not acceptable. In this moment of history, we are faced with the same challenges as the Jim Crow laws in a different form. Acceptance of differences is still difficult amongst Americans. Homosexuals are still degraded, immigrants still frowned upon, low-income students still deprived of quality education, the rich still accused, fat people still discriminated at work, blacks still oppressed, whites still blamed, Asians still stereotyped, and with all this still happening, we are still a nation of invisibility. Far too many people are cursed, jeered, and taunted, and in effect, forced into the blanket of invisibility. This invisibility cloak we create, will one day be another scar in America. Let us prevent this scar from ever being formed. We can still stop it. Let’s listen to each other. It is our duty, as citizens of humanity and America, to stop this scar from leaving its disgraceful mark.