The never-ending cruelty of man...

When I was in college, I fell into a bit of a minority. Not just because I preferred to speak english over my mother tongue (Tigrinya, Eritrea's national language) but because of my choice of majors. While most people expected me to major in English, I chose journalism, mainly because I felt it had more to offer me career-wise. And even then, I was still a bit of a loner. While most of my class-mates minored in political science, which was the "norm" and practical, I chose to minor in history, which I had always loved since high school. And in history, a common theme I found, time and again, is that man is truly the most violent of god's creations. For example, I once read that since the beginning of recorded history, humanity has had about 289 years worth of peace. That's roughly 8% of recorded history. What that means is that the other 92% of the time, we spent it engaged in some war, military act or what not. In short, we've spent the rest of the time trying to kill eachother. And sometimes, the true reason for this has been pointless.

One direct result of this has been migration, the movement of people from war-afflicted places to more peaceful environments, namely just to get away from it all. And why wouldn't they? Who would want to live in a war zone? But of course, migration is not without it's problems. Now, on one hand, I can understand the effects that an additional population can have on an environment. But, at the same time, the migrant himself is not without discomfort or dissappointment. But often, this has led to certain acts that have been.....distasteful to say the least.

Earlier this week, an Israeli man brutally attacked an Eritrean mother, with her 18-month-old child, stabbing the little girl in the head with a pair of scissors. The child has currently been hospitalized, receiving medical treatment, while the man has been charged with attempted murder. While this kind of senseless violence against children makes my blood run cold, it is his justication for the attack that truly sends a chill down my spine.

'I wanted to stop black terror,'......“I attacked black terrorists, she’s a black baby”.....“wanted to kill her, I didn’t try to kill her I was certain that I did it…the daughter of a whore died? The baby is dead? I’m sure she’ll die.”

If that wasn't bad enough, he further added that this was “a sword of vengeance for the whites against the terror against white people.” 

Seriously?!?! So.....by victimizing a small child, this person believes he is delivering some retribution for whatever imagined slights that have befallen him and his people? Forgive me for failing to see the logic, but that's just beyond stupid.

I personally can't think of a reason why this person, sane or otherwise, does not deserve to be put through the same amount of pain that he's inflicted upon that poor little girl. Shame on him and shame on anyone who would even begin to see this as remotely acceptable.

Unfortunately, this is simply the tip of the iceberg. In recent years, violence against immigrants has been on the rise. But then again, that is also incorrect. Violence against immigrants has been around since the dawn of man. One could argue that it is simply human nature, to distrust, dislike and even hate things that are different and not easy to comprehend. From the small towns to the big cities, anything that is even remotely uncommon is often seen with a distrustful eye.

To not like something is one thing, but to commit and act of violence against someone simply because they pray to a different deity or have skin that's 10 shades darker than yours, not only is that cruel and inhumane, it's also beyond stupid.

To anyone who views this as acceptable, let me spell it out for you....THAT IS WRONG! TO DO IT IS WRONG! TO THINK IT IS WRONG! And to even try and justify it is not only beyond wrong, it's illogical.

People immigrate to these developed countries not just to escape whatever hardships they endured, but to become accepted and a part of a new soceity. These are not bottom-feeders or slackers. They are simply people who are willing to work for an honest day's pay. They are no different than you are. So, why treat them any worse?

To anyone who is reading this, we are all judged by our actions. We are judged by our best and worst course of action, plain and simple. In the end, that's how we are remembered. Don't be remembered by something stupid you did. Be remembered by making a difference.

As for the coward who attacked this child......may god have mercy on you.....because very few people will.