Dear Future President,

Our nation is plagued by an epidemic...racism. Our nation’s minorities are mistreated by the stained ideals from an era long since gone. Immigrants, refugees, descendents of slaves, and our own ethnic natives, all have been abused as we sought manifest destiny and oppressed those who couldn’t fight back. Please address this issue as you govern this nation of immigrants, America.

In 1619, the first African peoples stepped foot on our soil. After being forcibly taken from their homes, stuck on crowded ships, and beat by their European and colonial jailers. Once they arrived, they were put to work producing tobacco, cotton, and other American cash-crops. This occurred until the Civil War. Fast-forward about 70-90 years, when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X were both assassinated for saying what they believed, and trying to pass the Civil Rights Act, thereby “ending” African-American oppression. This was also supported by JFK, who was also assassinated (and his assassin was assassinated). After his death LBJ, his tougher VP, pushed the issue, and made it legal. Another jump, now to the present, police shootings and brutality towards random innocent African-American people sparks riots and outrages, like in Ferguson or Charlotte. These random acts of violence by police officer creates rifts between them and the people. Even though it's only a few select individuals, events like these make people lose trust in the law. Is this something that we want? Of course, there have been instances where the individuals who’ve been shot may have actually done something not entirely lawful. But there have also been innocent people going about their business holding what looks like a “suspicious” object, who are subjected to the wrath of their “friendly neighborhood” police officer, with antiquated ideals.

Not only people we have brought here against their will have been mistreated. This dates back to the founding of our country, the land of the “free.” Benjamin Franklin said, “A colony of aliens who will shortly be so numerous as to Germanize us instead of our Amplifying them and will never adopt our language or customs any more than they can acquire our complexion.” In effect he said that immigrants would be so stubborn as to not learn English and keep their mannerisms. This is incredibly untrue, as many people are apt to assimilate and blend their cultures. This probably arose from a fear that foreigners would outnumber the original colonists, otherwise known as xenophobia. This continued into the 1940s, when FDR ordered all Japanese people in California to be sent into internment camps. This may have had good intentions, considering the Japanese may have been secret agents for the Japanese Empire. This was almost entirely untrue, as many had fled to America to lead better lives. The situation is similar today, where politicians wish to block entrance to refugees from war-torn countries to lead better lives. This is under the pretence that they may be terrorist themselves, or maybe just plain racist or anti-semitic views. Then to the south, where there are people planning to bar entrance to Mexicans, with similar logic, i.e. their relations to drug cartels, more racism, etc. Thus, this shows America’s long policy of hiding behind a façade of being a free and open nation.

These aren’t the only peoples abused by the United States. The Native American population before the arrival of Columbus was thought to be anywhere from 2.1 to 18 million people. Then after Columbus arrived in America diseases from the old world, the population was reduced to around 90% of the original population. After that, the colonists tried to use Native Americans as slaves, but decided that African slaves would be better, for the natives were dying in droves.After America had expanded from coast to coast, we continued to take advantage of by abusing our treaties with them, forcefully sending their children to our boarding schools, suppressing their religion, and Native languages. We continued to make fun of them through the the late nineties, especially on TV. Recently, Senator Bernie Sanders commented on the Dakota pipeline incident, Where will pipeline was trying to be built under Native American sacred ground. At the reserve said “Time and time again, our Native American brothers and sisters have seen the federal government break solemn promises, and huge corporations put profits ahead of the sovereign rights of Native communities. As President, I will stand with Native Americans in the struggle to protect their treaty and sovereign rights, advance traditional ways of life, and improve the quality of life for Native communities."

Scientific evidence shows that there's no such thing as human races, just one human race with a myriad of different ethnicities. We are simply people with different color skin, which aren't even really color is, they're just different shades of brown. This is merely human nature as humans are tribal and racial creatures, but if we overcome these differences we can live in a better society where all people have the same opportunities and freedoms they deserve. This is the foundation America was built on, where all free men and women may live and work to raise their children to become loving, caring people. But sadly, this is not what America looks like today. As the next president I ask one simple thing of you: work to end this incredibly antiquated and quite frankly, stupid burden off the American people. Nothing good has ever come from racism.

Sincerely,

Jaiden Compuesto

Sources:

"Bernie Sanders (D)." ProConorg Headlines. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2016.

Morin, Rich, and Renee Stepler. "The Racial Confidence Gap in Police Performance." Pew Research Centers Social Demographic Trends Project RSS. N.p., 29 Sept. 2016. Web. 07 Oct. 2016.