Brennan Saving Private Ryan (XC)

Jeremiads are long stories, usually told in prose, that show an imminent downfall of society. As I stated in class, I feel that racism is an element of today's society, which needs lamenting. Throughout my entire life, my parents have stressed the idea to accept everyone equally no matter the color of his skin, his culture, or his religion. My experience with racism is much different than any other 18 year old, Catholic, White girl you will meet.

I grew up knowing that many of my dad's cousins and siblings were in interracial marriages or relationships. I had mixed cousins, and family members of African American descent. Whenever I would tell my friends this, of course they never believed any of it, which is why I feel racism is an element of American society that needs lamenting. In the Declaration of Independence, our country's founders wrote "all men shall be created equal." Even when these words were written, men were far from what the founders considered as "equal." Today, racism is not nearly as prevalent and terrible as it was in earlier times, but it still exists. Knowing that my family members are still seen as minorities and inferior to other races makes me extremely uncomfortable. Laws/ideals and actualities seem to contradict one another in American society. Although Americans have come a long way from the times of the Jim Crow Laws, or the bus boycott, it scares me to know that my country is not practicing what it is preaching. Tradition plays a key role in determining one's moral standing, and when something as horrible as racism is passed down from generation to generation, it tends to stick.

This image is ironic in my experience with it. I watched every World Cup game this past summer, and I witnessed the "Say No to Racism" banner and ceremony on a daily basis. The ceremony was run through so quickly, the players sometimes forgot what they were supposed to say, and the crowd was never reverent. I feel that this shows that racism is not a key issue in many people's lives. I know this image doesn't show Americans, but racism is a global issue. Even if these men truly were against racism ad truly wanted to speak out against it, the fact that there is still an international ceremony and company based solely on promoting an end to racism is a scary thought. There are never exact answers to if, how or when racism will end, which is why I chose it as my jeremiad. I think the founders had it right, but not on every level. Hopefully one day the Declaration of Independence will truly be a declaration of freedom, independence, and social equality.