Open your eyes people, racism is far from dead

Some may think that because it’s 2017 that it’s common sense to treat others with dignity and respect. Unfortunately that thought is wrong. [caption id="attachment_17260" align="aligncenter" width="838"] The Setonian Logo[/caption] There are now two open investigations regarding racially charged incidents that were aimed at students of Seton Hall. These incidents, an email and a social media post, happened within two weeks of each other and were both done in cowardice. The authors of the email and the post concealed themselves behind their computer screens like the chickens they are; they hid from the consequences of their actions, yet the black community doesn’t get the chance to hide from racism. They face it almost every day. As a university, we preach that Seton Hall is not a place for hate. This is true. According to collegefactual.com, 50.8 percent of undergraduate students at SHU identify as people of color. Racism or any form of bigotry doesn’t belong on such a diverse campus. Yet here were are, only two months into the semester with two separate attacks on our black community. If this isn’t meant to be a place for hate then we need to do something to actually make it that way. Fundamentally, no matter what political party or religion you belong to, racism is wrong. If you disagree with that, please seek psychological help. Denouncing racism is one thing, but actually doing something to try and prevent it from happening in the future is what our campus must do. This burden doesn’t just fall on the administration, but on the entire university community. Witnessing racist acts and doing nothing to stop them is just as bad as doing the act yourself. These incidents aren’t always so obvious, either, and it may even take some explaining to someone as to why an act is racist. But no matter how small a discriminatory act may seem, it is up to us as a community to stop them all. When we let these ‘smaller’ acts slide and we become complacent, it opens a doorway for bigger, more malicious incidents (such as the ones we have recently experienced) to happen. Some may pretend to be shocked that racism is still alive and well in 2017, but it is immature and socially irresponsible to pretend that racist acts are not a common occurrence. Just because our country is no longer segregated doesn’t mean that white supremacists weren’t just marching in the streets of Virginia. Wake up everyone, and let’s do our best to prevent a third incident from happening to our community. The Voice is intended to best represent the collective opinion of The Setonian’s Editorial Board. It is written by The Setonian’s Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor.