crossroads I

[AN: this is not meant to be an entry that generates any kind of backlash, it’s just my philosophical outlook on today’s society, so please try not to be too nasty.  also, it’s only the first part of what i’m sure will be many, as i think about this issue often.]

Our country seems to be at a crossroads.  Half of us are actively trying to eliminate discriminate and racism from our lives, while the other half is perpetuating these stereotypical views laid forth by our history.  When slavery was abolished, it was supposed to lead us on a road to equality, as was the fight for women’s suffrage as well as the civil rights movement.  Yet we still have these wide valleys between black and white, man and women, gay and straight, Christian and not.  this country was built on freedom, equality and love, yet the people seem to value oppression, discrimination and hate.

Let me start with the ever hot topic of the "race issue".  I put it in quotations because I believe it only exists if we as a people let it.  With programs like affirmative action and constantly using terms like black andwhite, we are only widening that gap and makign that issue a reality.  Equality does not mean giving more  to those who were oppressed in the past, it means giving everyone equal opportunities to achieve their goals.  Unless you are highly  underprivilaged, but academically equally as qualified than the next person, I see no reason why the color of your skin should give you more advantage.  To put it bluntly, it’s just skin.  It covers the same number of bones and the same organs as anybody elses (minus an appendix or two).  It has no effect on how smart you are, or how tall you are, etc.  It just plain shouldn’t make a difference.  Are we really to stubborn and ignorant a society to rise above our past and stop holding the grudges our great-great-great grandparents held?  In no way do I mean that we should forget the abomination that slavery was, but we should at least let it stop coudling our vision as we work toward a better society.  Can we not as a society take a stand to stop out racism and end this multicentury long argument?  I think it’s fair to say at this point that we are just beating a dead horse.

Gender equality is another widespread issue, although it has not risen to the extent of racism.  Women had to fight for the right to vote, the right to make as much money as their male counterparts, and numerous other things.  I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that our anatomical differences somehow made us less qualified to do anything but have children and cook.  If anything, women should be held in higher esteem than men because we are willing to birth an 8 pound infant from between our legs.  I see nothing wrong  with women who choose to stay at home and raise their families, in fact, I aspire to be one.  I also see no problem with a woman who aspires to hodl a high paying job, whether a doctor, a lawyter, or an astrophysicist.  More power to them.  There are a large amount of women who manage to raise a family, hold a steady and healthy marriage and be just as successful or more successful in their profession than a man.  If that’s not proof that we were created equal, I don’t know what is.