3 WAYS TO LISTEN
1. Listen to the full article here:
2. Right click here and “save as” to save an mp3 of the article to your computer.
3. Listen to sections of the article by pressing the play buttons that appear before a set of words in the article below.
READING LEVEL 7
Division among Us
Joseph Fimbres
Racism has been a divider among people for many years. I have seen people of color treated like they are less than human. I have seen white people try to put themselves above the law and above other people. I have experienced it for myself. A white police officer treated me with a disrespectful attitude because I am Hispanic.
On a Sunday morning, while on my way to church, a police officer got behind my truck and began to run my plates. Then he followed me to church, trying to pull me over. I wasn’t breaking the law or even causing trouble. I believe he did this because I’m Hispanic. I felt annoyed that this police officer was singling me out, and I took it personally. I allowed it rob me of my joy, peace, and sound mind.
When I pulled in to the church parking lot and got out of my truck with my wife, I began to rehearse this offense over and over in my mind to the point that I wanted to explode. I needed to talk to someone, so I talked with my pastor and told him what had happened. Once we were done talking, I felt better and I was able to let it go. This situation helped me to grow up and mature spiritually. God used it as a character-builder in my life. In my past, this would have gone a totally different way.
I strongly believe wholeheartedly that God created all mankind equally in His image. There are no winners on either side of racism; it’s a lose-lose situation. Any man, regardless of race, loses his God-given identity when he chooses to act in a racist way because it boosts false pride and destroys his integrity. We as a nation under God are bringing division among ourselves, and we are hurting ourselves as a people and as a nation.
The only thing that racism brings is division, strife, hate, and bitterness. Clearly, then, there is no room for love, unity, and friendships among races—only discord.
In conclusion, even though there are still people out in the world that live this way, I believe that if I walk in love, I can lead by example and help break the cycle of racism where I live. I pray that other people will do the same.
Joseph Fimbres is a GED student at Pima College Adult Education in Tucson, Arizona. He and his wife are involved in Celebrate Recovery, a Christian-based 12-step program. Joseph wants to use his GED credential to increase his opportunities to help people who, in his words, are broken.