The Masks We Need for Humanity

Masked individual

 After this pandemic, we may still need masks.Masks that cover from the neck to the crown. Not for the love of masks, but for the love of humanity. Most importantly, I believe these masks could help curb racism, eventually leading to its “death.” Racism has caused more deaths and suffering than some known diseases. It is barbaric and archaic to judge someone for something they cannot control.

Imagine discriminating against someone because they have darker skin than you. It is one of the most foolish ideas ever conceived. I often wonder what the first person to discriminate racially was thinking. Perhaps the person they targeted was smarter, stronger, or simply better, and so they attached their hatred to skin color. That hatred then spread through society, and soon everyone associated that individual’s actions with their skin color. That is my theory of the genesis of racism. Wherever it originated, I consider it the most evil form of discrimination.

Racism may have seemed “relevant” in the past, but in today’s era, it has no justification. It goes beyond skin color; some people face discrimination based on eye color, hair color, or mixed heritage. Mulattoes and Mestizos often experience bias for these reasons. Racism also appears in sports, academics, job allocation, and even films, where it is portrayed as funny or entertaining. As the world laughs at these depictions, our ancestors must be shaking their heads at our foolishness.

We need those masks. Yet human nature is strange—even if masks hide skin color, people may begin judging others by their voices. Human problems, it seems, are insatiable.