 |
| The kid and I lived to see grad day and beyond. |
Background
There is an event that happened in my youth that has stood out
for me all these years. I grew up in East Vancouver and went to Tupper High
School. At the time I did not know the term diversity, but looking back I can
say we were a diverse population of students. I was unaware of how poor my
family was money wise, until one time that I invited my friends over for
a birthday “party” and seeing my tiny cake, one of my friends refused to have
any. It was then that I began looking around and noticed that many of my
friends’ families owned the homes they lived in. It had not occurred to me that
our family always renting a suite had to do with my parent’s inability to be
approved for a mortgage.
There was a blend of students at the school and I could
see that along with a variety of groups with diverse value systems, there were also gangs, drugs and underage sex. I was blessed to have
several groups of friends who were wonderful and kind and many of them knew what
they wanted to study in post secondary. Then there were some like me who did not
have a clue. I was so clueless, I thought that my parents would be able to pay
for me get a higher education and I was put out when I discovered I was on my
own. I am grateful I had friends who talked about college and university, nemeses
who seemed to always beat me at grades, sports and student leadership. It was
because of them that I found a way to continue learning after high school. Being active in different clubs
and activities at school, meant that I had a range of friends.
Nunchakus Day:
One day there was a crowd gathered outside of my school. I
was on my way home when I came upon a kid I knew, surrounded by a bunch of the
rugby guys and other students. They were looking on almost gleefully waiting
for a couple of uninvited "visitors" with nunchakus get ready to beat on him. My self righteous
indignation took over my sensibility and I stepped into the middle of the circle, with this
kid. Instead of lingering in the crowd of onlookers, I stepped forward and told
the two “visitors” to our school that they would not be beating on this kid that
day. They looked around defiantly but also with a bit of nervousness in their eyes.
And they completely ignored me and continued to prepare the weapons. It was clear they would not be listening to me. Who would? I was a short and dorky Latina
with absolutely no muscles and no defensive training. When they kept getting ready to beat on this
kid, the thought entered my mind that it was gonna hurt to get a beating with nunchakus. I thought this because I was committed. I figured if they did not get me then, they might follow me home or come back another day with more guys.
Anyone who knows how low my pain threshold is knows that preparing myself for a
beating would have taken all the courage my little soul could muster. So, I was terrified and probably my fear of
getting hit with metal bars jump-started my brain and I told the two guys with weapons
to look around. I said something like:
You two have the rugby team surrounding
you! These guys are used to playing hard and are tough. You think they are going to let you come to our school and beat up on one of our students! They are not going to let you take this kid down!
AND, if they do not stop
you, I am going to go and get the principal. So, you can go home….
Obviously,
not exactly my words because I am so old, I can not remember but it was something
like that.
And you know what, by some miracle, the rugby guys realized the important role they could play in this scenario and they remembered the values they had
been taught by their parents and our awesome counselor/rugby sponsor Mr.
Patterson. So, the rugby guys then also told the nunchakus wielding fellows to be
on their way. Although they were the only ones with weapons, seeing themselves surrounded by a bunch of athletic Greeks, Poles, and Italians who now seemed ready to throw down, they figured they better not try to fight the rugby team. The "visitors" left instead. Those of us in the circle lived to see another day.
 |
| Some of the Rugby guys |
I turned to look at this kid, who was my friend, waiting for a hug or a thank you or a happy nod. Nope, nothing happened. He seemed to look at me with some irritation and maybe a hint of disgust on his face. Not perturbed by his reaction, I realized he might not have been a feminist and may not have appreciated a girl “coming to the rescue”, or at least a girl "volun-telling" the rugby team to help. The other thought that crossed my mind was that maybe he could have taken those two down. He likely could have taken two of them on, he is talented. I just did not want to be part of the onlookers watching two guys with weapons beating on an unarmed youth for no reason. I also could not just walk past and go merrily on my way to the safety of my home. The choice to look away or just look on without stopping an injustice would have haunted me later.
Today:
I have attempted to share my experience with violence and injustice in a lighthearted way. However, this was a pivotal, truly perspective changing afternoon for me. I recognize that for so many in the world, violence and injustice are part of everyday life.
Why has this memory come back into my mind? Because I am
tired, I am weary of seeing the news where people in a position of power are
taking advantage of that power to intimidate, hurt and even kill. There is no
excuse for the violence.
I am repulsed by the actions taken so often by people
with power to inflict pain and violence to so many people of color. Like African Americans, my people
are targeted simply because of the way that we look! We cannot change the color
of our skin! And even when injustice occurs to the white people, it is still not okay. IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT YOU LOOK LIKE, WHO YOU
ARE, WHERE YOUR FAMILY ORIGINATES FROM, WHAT YOUR FAITH IS or WHO YOU LOVE, there
is no excuse for brutality in our society in 2020! Period.
I am not advocating for all of us to take the law into our own hands or for us to put ourselves in harms way. Clearly, my decision to
step in, would have had disastrous repercussions for myself and my future if
things had gone a little differently.
I AM advocating for people to step up. ESPECIALLY those with
power or influence or who do not belong to a marginalized group. USE your
privilege and do something good! Do not be a by-stander or a passerby or worse,
the kind of soul that is entertained by witnessing the pain of others! Anytime
that you can help, DO IT!
Woman up!
