My character is going to help me preserve justice in this world

BY ALEXA SERRANO

As Catholics, our mission is to maintain peace, fairness, and most of all love among people of all backgrounds. Hate crimes and discrimination are on the rise these days, and are certainly the most demeaning to our country. The United States is the most diverse nation in the world and has built itself upon equality for all, no matter your appearance. Today people tend to forget that, and discrimination is ever so present. Discrimination goes further than physical hate crimes, and deeper than emotional scars; it creates stereotypes and takes away a person’s dignity.

This issue is very pressing, and is very important to me because I am part of a minority race; I am Puerto Rican. Puerto Rico is struggling like every other country in the world. Many people are poor, and lack a solid education. Puerto Ricans, like many other nationalities are very traditional, and their methods of doing things are different. Stereotypes are often formed out of misunderstanding, and a lack of interaction. Minorities not only face many physical challenges in reaching success, but they also face internal challenges. Questions such as, “Should I go for it?” “Can I do this?” “Is all this ridicule really worth it?”

Racial discrimination and stereotyping for us as Catholics not only breaks legal law, it breaks our moral law as well. The eighth commandment tells us “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” This stretches further than lying in a courtroom, or spreading rumors about the kids in school. This commandment teaches us not to allow our opinions to falsely “label” a person with words that do not describe them. This commandment, as with all Ten Commandments, tells us to love God by loving our neighbors. God is the creator of every person who walks this earth, and He loves all of us equally. When we fail to love one of God’s creations, we fail to love Him.

Not only has the fact that I am part of a minority group given me the courage and determination to make a change, but so has my upbringing. My parents always taught me to be accepting, and to treat everyone as you would like to be treated. Through my school career, I have learned that everybody is equal and deserves to be treated with respect. I grew up in a predominantly white, Jewish neighborhood, and attended the public schools where I learned many life lessons. When I transferred to Catholic school in 10th grade it gave me more exposure to people from all different towns, and of all different races. My experience has been positive, as I have made friends who are Haitian, Korean, African, and of more nationalities.

Being exposed to people of all ethnicities, and beliefs has allowed me to accept and actually become interested in their traditions and cultures. My previous experiences have given me the courage, determination, and knowledge to fight against racially targeted crimes. In the future I plan to become a lawyer for a professional sports team, and become one of the few minority women to succeed at this. I also plan to coach in a youth softball league, where I can hopefully inspire young girls of all backgrounds to go for their dreams no matter who doubts you.
 

ALEXA SERRANO, a senior at St. Dominic High School in Oyster Bay, was awarded a $1,000 scholarship toward her senior year tuition by the Catholic Lawyers Guild of Nassau County for this essay.