Justice Shall Prevail

Though some continue to posit that racism and segregation is merely a quandary of old, arguing that our nation has shifted toward a new trend of meritocracy, many others, however, ardently believe that racism has not really declined; it has only been more cleverly camouflaged behind the increasing amount of politically correct verbiage and practice. I however, have taken the moderate ground in this debate. America, I do concede, has made enormous strides when it comes to civil rights. However, fragments of racism and preferential treatment still remain within our growing egalitarian society, which can be evidenced by a particular event in which four African American employees were strip searched by their white managers after a mere $100 dollars went missing, though their white co-workers who were also present at the time were not subjected to such ill treatment.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, as a result, has filed a lawsuit on their behalf for such preferential, invasive and unwarranted search of these African American employees who were so unjustly violated. With this recent transpiration of legal action against this north Georgia restaurant, it is quite comforting to know that such ill-advised treatment of individuals is now a contested practice and that there are avenues that mistreated individuals can take to seek recompense and justice within contemporary America. However, public apologies and monetary forms of restitution will almost never fully reverse the psychological, emotional, and sometimes even physical effect on any given individual.

Such acts of racism and maltreatment may forever linger within the minds of those directly affected, possibly breeding angst, hopelessness, and perhaps even feelings of inferiority. Social slights, often caused by racist actions/remarks have even proven to be quite stressful on individuals, which could further be detrimental to one’s health later down the road. It is more than unfortunate that such heinous acts of racism still happens today, despite such steps that our nation has taken to break down the barriers of segregation and racism. Thankfully, institutions, such as the Equal Opportunity Commission, have been built into today’s social structure with the hopes of reversing such unequal vintage acts of old. They continue to advocate for individuals who unfortunately lack the means and resources to bring about justice while concurrently advancing our nation to achieve the equality that countless others before us have so valiantly fought for.