As I walked from my house to
the library like I do most Saturdays, I noticed the view of the library garden
grass was not visible. Instead the walkway presented a wall.
The wall was large. Despite
the possible frail nature of its styrafoam composition, its structure stood
tall, ignited by the powerful words spray painted on its surface. These words
were not mere ornamentation; the words were whispers of oppression and a plea
for justice.
The red spray paint spelled
out the voices of immigrant students during “No Human Being is Illegal Week”
with the words:
“Do not mistreat or oppress
a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.”-Exodus 22:21
Stop deportations #Not1more
“No Human being is Illegal.”
As of 2014, there are around
6,500 undocumented college students in the United States. As I saw faced these
words, I was immediately reminding of the Trump Immigration debate organized by
my journalism class. From this wall to the passionate debate hosted a few weeks
ago, the traction of the LMU student voice was rising and it was clear campus had
become the primary spot of expression. While I faced the graffiti wall, as US
citizen, not an illegal student, I could still feel the emotion run through my veins.
My very position of privilege as a first generation college student at Loyola
Marymount University was reliant on my parents migrating to the United States. Everything
I have was made possible due to the opportunities my parents found in the
United States. My father’s story has always been a significant part of my
identity as a most notable expressed my college entrance essay for LMU.
There
he was at mere age of 20 standing in his destination, Los Angeles California.
The young man had packed his whole life into one small duffel bag and a wallet,
which held only three hundred dollars. With no financial support and a scarce
amount of saved money, the young man had two things, which proved to be more
valuable, determinación
y disciplina. He was now in a land of dreams and opportunities.
A land worlds apart from his homeland, Nicaragua. In Nicaragua equality,
liberty, and rule of law were ideals people only dreamed about. The young man
had grown up in the midst of a brutal war between the Sandinistas and the
Contras. Nonetheless, in 1981, he pulled himself out of a world of poverty and
into a world of opportunity.
As I tell my fathers story, I tell, not only my
story, but also the story of my country the United States. As I walked to the
library yesterday and was once again faced with the “No Human Being is Illegal”
wall, my heart instantaneously sank. This was not the wall I once knew. Instead
the wall was defaced with the words “Trump” and “Deport Illegals.” This
consequently and rightfully led to controversy, resulting in an LA times
article covering the vandalism. The article feature the commentary of LMU prof.
Martinez responding to the event in saying
"The community is asking itself a lot of
questions about free speech," a real issue on our campus about whether
people with contrary opinions who aren't spouting hate are scared of being
labeled intolerant and racist (LA Times)"
After the Trump Immigration debate, it was evident
the Trump and anti immigration supporters are less vocal about there opinions
on campus. While my personal beliefs do not line up with those of Trump, do I
believe they should be silenced? Most definitely not
There is far more strength in a voice that speaks
with respect and dignity. There is a vast difference between expression and
defacement. The unfortunate reality is the vandals chose the later.
http://www.laloyolan.com/news/no-human-being-is-illegal-week-wall-defaced/article_68df98de-fb6c-11e5-9d34-0f3b56d10da5.html
Karen
Karen
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