Editor, Ceres Courier,

Sadly, my eyes are aching with grief from witnessing what our dear home has become. My eyes have seen that the lack of tolerance can create deep hatred among people. Many individuals label it as "racism." To me the word "racism" is not an adjective to describe man, but rather a man-made emotion. One learns to be a racist. One learns to feel hatred. When one is a child we see no color, we see no inferiority or superiority, we see no minority - we are all children. Indeed, children grow to see the differences in one another as they age, but their reaction is wonder. They become inquisitive as to why they are different from other human beings. Here, sadly, is where "racism" develops. Children are taught that the color of their skin, their ethnicity, or their beliefs are somewhat better from others who do not share their own similarities. Instead of growing to be tolerant to their neighbor, despise of the color of their skin, or their religious belief, or where they come from, they grow into this deep hatred to prove who is better. Unfortunately, this ignorance never ceases to vanish.

Today, this hatred has been powerfully ignited. Many blame our current president because he himself grew into these beliefs of superiority and minority. However, he is not to blame for the hatred that has infected this nation. He would not have the power to infect his beliefs unless we allowed him to affect us. I am not defending him because I definitely do not agree with the hot air that he spews, yet he is not the solution to this hatred. He can't fix this intolerance. Only we can. We all as human beings have to learn to be tolerant. We have to respect each other regardless of our differences. No wall is going to stop the hatred unless we ourselves tear down the wall we have put around us. No ban is going to stop the fear because evil comes from all places. We need to stop fueling this hatred and start understanding one another.

Brenda Romo,
Ceres

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