I was reading my local newspaper the other day and came upon an article that really bothered me. It was about the president of the College Republicans at Boston University: he was bragging that he had called ICE to report some workers at a nearby car wash for being "criminals" who have "no right to be here." He seemed almost gleeful about the fact that ICE did in fact raid the car wash, and the workers had been arrested. He expressed his hope that this would happen to more of them, since they were taking away American jobs, he said, concluding with an exhortation to ICE to "Pump up the numbers."
Of course, there were several problems with the young man's version of events, the most notable one being that there was no evidence the men were "criminals." In fact, there was no evidence they were here illegally. He just saw them, noted their ethnicity, and made the assumption they didn't belong here. (As it turned out, the car wash manager and the attorneys for several of the men noted they were here legally, but it didn't matter. They were still arrested and detained.) And proving that irony isn't dead, the young man who was gloating about their plight was himself an immigrant, from England. Was he taking away the opportunity for an American student to attend Boston University? Who can say?
As you know, I've been a professor for more than three decades, and whenever I encounter college students behaving badly, my first thought is "What kind of parents does this kid have?" I understand that when kids go away to school, they can pick up some new beliefs. But often, these kids are still reflecting the attitudes they learned at home. Perhaps his parents are saints and they always taught him kindness. But then again, perhaps not. I do think it's worth asking where this kid got the idea that one should rejoice in another's misfortune. And where did he get the idea that every person with darker skin than his must surely be a "criminal"? This seems like a useful conversation to have.
I've lamented in other posts what I see as a lack of courtesy in the culture at large: kids (of all ages) who don't say please or thank you, kids who seem to feel that they are entitled to a good grade, kids who think it's okay to mock and bully anyone who is different. Maybe they see this sort of behavior from their elders and think it must be okay. Lord knows there is plenty of rudeness and nastiness online; and in real life, I'm sure we've all run into folks who take out their bad mood on anyone around them. (I was at a coffee shop recently and I saw someone yell at the clerk because there wasn't any Sweet and Low. As a cancer survivor, I thought to myself that if the worst thing in this person's life is a lack of Sweet and Low, their life ain't so bad...)
Meanwhile, I really hope that parents in general are taking the time to teach their kids courtesy. And I also hope they are teaching their kids it's never okay to be scornful or judgmental about anyone who is different. We seem to be living in a world when some folks think cruelty towards "the other" should be praised; but it's not too late to let kids know that compassion is a good quality, and making assumptions about people you don't know is no way to live your life. I've never met the kid who was bragging that he got some immigrants arrested, but as I said, gloating over another's problems is not a good look for anyone. And while I've never met his parents either, all I can say is, "Teach your children well," because parents are often the first role models kids have, and kids will emulate what the grown-ups around them say and do.
