Racism, the ideology that came into full flower as a justification for European conquest of most of the planet, is now headquartered in the US. There could be no justification for a student group’s aggression, without the basic assumptions of racial superiority. Thursday, a student group at New York university played a game called “Catch the Illegal Immigrant,” a game where participants have a chance to win a prize if they find an individual with an “illegal immigrant” nametag. (h/t to D. Throat over MarisaCat) The game was sponsored by the NYU College Republicans.

As predicted the College Republicans are whining that the game is not really racist, it was only intended to raise awareness on immigration issues in the United States. College Republican President Sarah Chambers had this to say:

“Just because we don’t want illegal immigrants being able to completely disregard the laws of our country doesn’t make us racist,” said Chambers, 21, a political-science major from St. Louis.

“Them saying that this event is racist is a way to discredit us without actually having to engage in the debate.”

The NYU Republican club members did show to hunt for an “illegal immigrant” for the remainder of the day. Caitlin Kannall, 20, secretary of the College Republicans and a sophomore from IL was the lucky gringa who play the role of the Brown. Nobody has yet mentioned what methods she used to hide or what stereotypes activities she used to evade the hunters.

This is really not new, last year, a student group, Young Americans for Freedom, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor also played this game, which also was promoted by College Republican National Committee.

After a summer of intense debate over immigration, students wanted to keep the issue burning on campus. The Young Americans for Freedom at both the University of Michigan and Michigan State University in East Lansing considered hosting the game after it was suggested by Morgan Wilkins, then a field representative for the College Republican National Committee.

“In order to grab a college student’s attention, you’re going to have to do something different, something that might make a couple people mad, but it’s going to generate dialogue and it’s going to get students who are generally apathetic to get involved in political issues, and it did that,” Wilkins said.

I wonder what other colleges are playing this game?

Dalia Yedidia, alongside African Americans and progressive people of other nationalities, held it upon themselves to give a voice to the undocumented immigrant families who live in fear from xenophobic nativists, like the Republican Party. Yedidia, a freshman at NYU, who was instrumental in organizing about 500 demonstrators to show up and protest this sick and twisted game.

It is evident that student groups, like the College Republicans, are not concerned in debating the issue rather they prefer to minimize it. Over 3,000 people - including hundreds of children - have died in the desert. Their blood is on the hands of those who merely trivialize the seriousness of the matter.

Ms. Caitlin Kannall from IL, do you suppose the person who was desperately looking for work believed he was playing a game with his life? Ms. Kannall, the fact is, you have never and never will have to deal with the same difficulties or stigmas as undocumented immigrant. You have no earthy idea what it is like to be hunted; or grasp the dangerous conditions they go through. You don’t even have the faintest clue what happens once a woman is apprehended. Many of them report being raped is the “price” for not being apprehended and/or deported, or having their confiscated documents returned. This is not something you can just roll your eyes at, nor can you and your club claim that is another instance of the media making a huge deal out of nothing and demonizing the “racist white.” This is not an X-box game where you another life or simply walk away if you are killed; fascist scapegoating should never be up for academic discussion.

To think by having this would foster some type of discussion is seriously flawed. So what social ill is next on the group’s agenda they plan to tackle, cross burning to facilitate a conversation on racism? Or is it beating up the downtrodden, to discuss the homeless issue? Truth is, this is type of behavior is not new among college students either. There is a regular trend that is taking place around colleges and universities across the country; it is in the form of racist parties where white people believe it is fashionably acceptable to exploit degrading stereotypes of minority cultures for the purpose of humor. A private, off-campus party organized by Santa Clara University students is the latest report regarding another theme party with racial overtones, “South of the Border.” (h/t to VivirLatino)

A “South of the Border” theme party has stirred outrage at a Jesuit university in Silicon Valley after students showed up at the bash dressed as Latino janitors, gardeners, gang members and pregnant teens.

Photographs from the private, off-campus party organized by Santa Clara University students in late January appeared on the Internet soon afterward, prompting an outcry on campus.

Just because segregation is no longer legal, does not mean racism is dead. All it did was take on a different form and now it has become a collective problem. Like a virus, racism has entered our school and through out this country in the most dangerous form: a subconscious and institutionalized one - structured racism.

This form of racism disguises itself with subtleness making it more palatable, more digestible for those being subjugated to it and that we ought to focus more on blatant racism because it is easier to deal with. I know I am repeating myself, when I say that repeating misethnic slurs will only bring about institutionalized discrimination, which is only meant to detract from a person’s humanity, dignity, self-respect, standing, and potential.

I have been holding back, but as of this writing, VivirLatino just report that immigrant sweeps are occurring across 17 states and the District of Columbia. Sabes que? I am tired and now I’m am just going lay it down whether you like it or not.

What people refuse to accept, America is reverting back to classifying people of color and the working class as second-class citizens. And second-class citizenship is nothing but modern day slavery. As long as people have this mentality of not wanting to talk about it in the “Land of Free” racism will continue to exist. We are at the point again where it is liberty or it is death. It’s freedom for everybody or freedom for nobody This message must be and has to be ingrained into our subconscious. We cannot afford to roll our eyes whenever the issue of race is brought up. Things will not be fixed by watching Oprah or Dr. Phil. It will not get resolved by watching some 30 min sitcom show.

America today finds herself in a unique situation because this government has abandoned us. The Democratic controlled Congress that claims that they are concerned about our rights, that is still the government. Don’t be fooled by party labels because any manner of activity that takes place on the floor of the Congress or the Senate, that is the government. Any kind of act that is aimed to hinder or strip us of obtaining OUR full rights, the government is accountable for it. And any time you find the government involved in a conspiracy to violate OUR civil rights then we are wasting our time expecting government redress.

It is time we start a new civil rights struggle, and frame our argument that is not only limited to civil rights but include human rights as well. In order to win, we must do what Malcolm X suggested, we must take this struggle to the UN. By doing this we allow the world witness the crimes against humanity committed by the rich elites who are running this country through the guises of Uncle Sam. They are guilty of violating the human rights of the working class and community of color, yet, they still have the arrogance to stand up and represent themselves as the leaders of the free world.

The only way we are going to solve this problem is through unity. We can no long afford air out our differences in public; we have to accept the fact that we are all in the same boat. We must bridge our difference with other ethnic/racial/cultural groups in the community, in the city, in the state, and throughout this country. We remain divided because it is the strategy of the capitalist elites and it has always been their strategy “divide and conquer.” They keep us divided in order to conquer us.

The decision is yours. If you are not ready to pay that price, don’t use the word freedom in your vocabulary.

Technorati Tags: Racism, Republicans, Sarah Chambers, Caitlin Kannall, Dalia Yedidia, NYU, Santa Clara University, structured racism, institutionalized discrimination

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