Written by Andrelyn Izquierdo.
My opinion on a political social media post that made my blood boil.
Follow this link to view the video:
If you took a look at this video, you're probably wondering the same question as I am as to how does a soldier fighting in World War II has anything to do with media playing on a television in a pizza shop that is speaking in the Spanish language. How ignorant is this person? Not only do these two scenarios have nothing to do with each other, she seems to have failed history class because World War II did not take place in Spain. She must have skipped class during that week long school curriculum event because even Anne Frank in her book mentions the locations of some of the concentration camps during that time.
One of the quotes she mentioned that urked me as she threatens the restaurant employee when he asks her, "What's wrong with that," is where the racism is very obvious.
The lady mentioned, "Because you're an American Dude. I will look you the fuck up and get you out of our town. Fuck you."
It made me wonder...Why so aggressive? She sounds like a racist Karen (that was her actual name before the trend came about) I had to deal with when working at a restaurant who flipped out for no reason because of something she didn't like and brought race into the picture. Why is this woman so bothered at the fact that Spanish is playing on the tv?
The woman continues insulting the guy with, "You're in America, you're supposed to learn English."
First of all, the World Population Review states, “As of 2019, the Hispanic population in the United States is over 60.47 million." And this is only counting those of Hispanic descent who are being accurately recorded within the census according to their background. So the obvious question would be, why aren't there television sets playing the Spanish language when more people speak it? What I've learned from conversing with friends from around the world in various countries is that many countries have their residents speaking in at least 2-3 different languages. Why is it that America is still stuck in having the English and Spanish language compete as the main language rather than accept the fact that we have at least two staple languages that we all need to learn to better communicate with each other? The schools have had Spanish as the main foreign language to learn as an elective within the Middle School curriculum since decades ago with French as the runner up option. But to fit this into our social conversations, it seems to still be quite a challenge.
Another thing to mention, "Many Hispanic people who call the United States home immigrated to the States at some point in their lifetimes, but many Hispanic people were born in the United States.” Yes, news flash, many people who can speak Spanish didn't come from another country many moons ago. This is such an ignorant statement. We are in the year 2023 and still have to listen to this crap. When will things change? Can people start to take maturity seriously already and grow up so we can move on?
Her biggest gripe seems to be due to this reasoning that she says aloud, "That's a fuck you to Americans." Uh, no it's not. If anything, the restaurant having Spanish as an option to be viewed and heard on the tv inside is more inclusive. We are supposed to be branching out further in expanding our reach to more people with inclusivity. This happens culturally. What better way to reach another culture to bridge with than with language? This is good business sense as well according to their demographics as they can get more customers. So again, why not?
I really do like how a person was standing up to her by stating, "Because you're a racist!"
She's right!!!! Besides noting the fact that she was upset about Spanish being on the tv, she mentioned a cliche insult of trying to deport the person. Another thing to notice is that she is getting so angry over nothing the person had done. Her anger is geared towards something different that she clearly cannot understand. Why is she being so hostile? It's simple. She feels threatened, but it doesn't make her actions okay with how she reacted to that. There was no reason for her to be so upset and then demand a refund because there's another language present at the shop.
Well, that's the ending of my analysis on this video. I hope that if you end up having to encounter something like this that you stand up to it. Clearly mentioning that the comments stated are racist is one way to address this issue. Another would be, to say what the appropriate action could be done in its place to help deescalate the encounter. If that doesn't work, then it's time to mention that the irrational response is not welcome at the place especially with it being racism. The woman would have to leave or a phone call to local law enforcement would have to happen. This is how I had to solve my problem when I had the Door Dash driver named Karen refuse to leave the store and focus her anger on the Hispanic, being me, and my coworker who was Black. Definitely not okay, with how she shifted her attitude to favorable when addressing my White manager.
Always stand up to racism no matter what. It's a form of behavior that represents hatred. The more people who do it, the more likely these encounters should cease to exist. They're only around because many people are still allowing it. So remember to speak up and speak out.
Cheers to you for standing up for yourself or for another person targeted by racial or discriminatory remarks.
Good luck to you.
Bibliography:
World Population Review. Hispanic Population by State 2023: https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/hispanic-population-by-state 2/24/23.
#racism #hostile #encounter #socialmedia #video #opinion #politics #EndRacism #SayNoToDiscrimination #AndrelynWriting #blogger #writer #poet
This article is written by:
Andrelyn Izquierdo
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