In the USA
during the first half of the decade of 1870 the southern politicians against Afro
American people freedom and rights started to win the elections in their
states, sometimes by sabotage or threats, and little by little they started to
take an important part in the American parliament.
So, what
happened when all of this politicians against Afro American people became majority
in the Parliament? Well they created new
laws that separated white people from Afro American people.
The slogan “separated
but equals” was used during the decades in which the segregation laws were “legal”.
The slogan
of course it’s a cruel lie, because most of the laws that separated Afro
American people from white people, were based on “medical issues” like that “Negros”
could have some infections that white people didn’t have, and the things and
places were Afro American people could go, were in bad conditions.
Most of the
laws prohibited Afro American people to be in the same room eating with white people,
use the same things as white people, take the same sites in the bus as white
people, go to the same bathrooms, and so on.
After a lot
of death, fights and a lot of years in the decade of 1960 in most of the USA
states the segregation laws were abolished and proclaimed against the
constitution. I don´t think that it’s necessary
to mention that Martin Luther King was a big character during the fight for the
rights of Afro American people.
It’s been
more than 50 years since the laws were abolished, but, don’t we have similar
laws nowadays? Aren’t we discriminating our own kind?
We have a
constant struggle with the mapuches; we are treating them as terrorists, not as
a community a nation that has traditions, a lifestyle, that is part of us.
We tend to eliminate
the things that cause us troubles, we don’t face the things, but that doesn’t mean
that we have to get rid of a culture because they are different from us,
because they believe in different things and have their own past.
The reality with the mapuches is that the chilean state has a integrationist policy, where the mapuche´s culture is absorbed by the chilean culture. For the chilean state all we are chileans but, in this multicultural country, it isn´t. More than a legal segregation, the mapuches are a example of negation and disdain of the diferent cultures.
ReplyDeleteI'm agree with you because in a way we are living a similar and unfair reality in our country right now, and I only can thinking in this Afro american fight for their rights historical fact like a example for us, not only they could change their destiny, we can do this too and I'm refer not only in the mapuches I'm talking about the injustices of all of us in our country but like the Afro american fight is not going to be easy an if we want a change,we must be united in a same objective.
ReplyDeleteThis is what happens when politicians use their power not to achieve a common good but to benefit themselves. These unfairs laws just segregates and creates deeper problems, such as, as you mentioned, the problems with the Mapuche people here in chile, the aborigines in USA, and The Afro-American population. Good Post !! :)
ReplyDeleteThis is just another example of how far can intolerance for others can go. I mean, when I read the slogan "separated but equals" I was completely shocked! I hadn't heard of it, it's horrible! It's completely shameless, how could they say they were "equals"? Obviously they never believed that, it was just an excuse, as to imply that they actually thought afro americans were the same as them. But it's a pure lie! it's so indignant. And so again I see what this world is capable of.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, I liked your post! :)