I'll see you in the ICU!

Reflecting on MLK, New York, and...stuff.

I'm listening to the words and voice of Martin Luther King giving his famous speech, click below if you'd like to hear it and watch the slide show.



It suddenly strikes me that I was growing up thinking that racism is very much a thing of the past. When will I ever stop being grateful to my parents for continuing in their search for a home in the U.S. until they found the very liberal, and fair San Francisco?

Listening to MLK this morning, it strikes me that even in New York, these things are not so much a thing of the past. I've heard things that make me bristle. Homophobia, racism...I thought New York was progressive. Perhaps these sentiments are not native, but rather came here from more "behind-thinking" areas.

In fact, last week, a girl from Georgia proudly proclaimed that they don't celebrate MLK day, but rather Robert E. Lee day.

WTF?!

I was horrified, and almost threw up my breakfast.
They're out there, folks.

How does it continue to get perpetuated this long? What's the half-life on hatered?

Maybe it's just stereotypes. I've been subjected to lots of that here. Washington Heights is predominantly Black. Dominicans, Puerto Ricans and Cubans have settled this area many years before Columbia Medical campus was here, and now they endure all the affluent White college kids influx their area, with their show of wealth and arrogance, and disregard for the local culture.

As I was not used to Black people speaking Spanish, they are still not used to Whites speaking Spanish. They still look at me as if I'm a talking dog, when they hear me respond in an effort to spare them the struggle with English (as many of them still don't speak much English.)

Perhaps these perceptions are the first step in segregation. A differentiation of us and them. I dunno. I can't wait another couple hundred years (I wish I could see it) when we're all a beautiful mocha colored mix of ALL colors.

One big human race.
And nothing left to fight about.
Wait...isn't that a John Lennon song?



This one's for my mom, who absolutely LOVED this song.
PS: you know I can't end on such a serious note, yeah?
I heard that Liverpool changed the name of its airport to John Lennon Airport CLICK HERE IF YOU THINK I MADE THIS UP! :) and they placed the inscription "above us, only sky" somewhere inside. A stand-up comic I was listening to said "what's next? at the baggage claim did they put "Imagine no possessions; it's easy if you try?" I thought that was hilarious.

Love you all! See you in 54 days, but who's counting?

posted by sketchmonkey @ 7:38 AM