Equality. Justice. Acceptance. I believe that all people should be treated equally, no matter what skin color or legal status. I believe that everyone is human and everyone deserves to be treated like a human no matter what. This is especially true for immigrants coming to the United States.
My uncle is a Hispanic immigrant from Honduras and I have seen how poorly others treat him because of the way he looks. He has been called stupid just because of his lack of fluent English speaking skills, and he has been degraded to the point of not even being worth anything. Every person deserves to be given the same respect as everyone else; a person’s legal status should not influence this.
Treating everyone as a human being is as simple as giving everyone the same common courtesy that you give anyone else. I have seen the devastating effects when this common courtesy is not shown and how it negatively affects a community. I have experienced a friend of my uncle being brutally murdered just because of the color of his skin. His killers said that they killed the man because he was “Mexican” even though he was from El Salvador. The teens beat him up and screamed racial slurs at him before fatally stabbing him in order to make him feel like an animal. All of this was due to his appearance. I believe we need to accept others and learn to live with them in our everyday lives.
Having an uncle who is Hispanic has opened my eyes to a different perspective on issues surrounding the immigration debate. I have had the unique experience and privilege to see many Hispanic immigrants that he has helped with their problems. It is humbling to see these hardworking individuals just trying to do everything they can to get a better life for their families. I have been raised to see them as people because this is what they are. They are nothing less, and they should not be treated as anything less just because they do not look like a typical American to you.
Everyone should be treated equally because everyone deserves the same chances. There is no one person, or group of people, who is above anyone else. To demean and degrade a person based on race is appalling and just wrong. I believe that equality is one of the most important things in a humane society. I believe that everyone deserves to be a part of this society.