Bias in our midst
My husband and I recently had a late lunch at our favorite neighborhood restaurant. It was around 2 p.m., and the place was half empty. As we walked in, I noticed a young Hispanic family with three children waiting to be seated. We were almost immediately led to our table, and a pleasant young woman took our order five minutes later.
We received our food and were leisurely talking when I noticed the family finally being escorted to a table. We had finished eating when their waiter finally took their order. I didn't hear any pleasantries, just a cold, "What can I get you?"
We were waiting for our receipt to come back when the family's food arrived. There were again no pleasantries, and the family ate quietly.
There was a familiarity to the situation: I was staring at discrimination as I had experienced it many times before. My light skin and colored hair has not always disguised my Hispanic background.
We don't hear much about this sort of thing anymore. What we do hear about is a lot of bashing of "illegal aliens" from Fox News and local talk shows, and it eventually spills over to the rest of us who are Hispanic. Critics never speak of the historical good these people have on our economy or that the majority of them are good, decent folks who just want the best for their families. What kind of society lets this kind of thing go on?
LU MALPIEDE
Bakersfield
