OPINION: Republicans Report — Being a “minority” conservative

Loru Yazdani is a first-year student double majoring in music production and law enforcement. She is a member of the Ohio University College Republicans. The following article reflects the opinions of the author and does not represent the thoughts of the Ohio University College Republicans.

This is a submitted column. Please note that these views and opinions do not reflect those of The New Political. 

[dropcap txtcolor="#234a83"]B[/dropcap]efore this school year began, I attended Ohio University’s transfer student orientation, and I found myself feeling extremely uncomfortable because, during the orientation, they focused so much on diversity, minorities and exclusivity. I felt as if myself, and all other “persons of color,” were being singled out. It made me just want to get up and leave. I know that they were only trying to be welcoming and accepting, but it just made me feel so uncomfortable.This focus on race and diversity is a recurring trend that I’ve noticed growing in the past few years and, personally, I find it extremely racist. Why should anyone be singled out — in any capacity, good or bad — simply because of their skin color? Am I not more than just the tone of my skin or the name I was born with? This is especially prevalent in the political world. I’ve noticed that, because of my background, people — namely those on the left — expect me to vote a certain way or have specific political leanings. When those on the left find out that I lean more to the right, it seems to enrage them and the racist comments fly. I’ve never had anyone from the conservative side say a racist thing to me. The left, however, upon realizing that I’m not thinking the way they want me to think, have hurled some of the most awful insults at me.I’ve been told that I need to stay out of airports and off airplanes because they don’t need terrorists like me in them. I’ve been threatened with deportation — even though I was born in America — and informed that I’m being turned over to the FBI for terrorist watch. I’ve been called a “suicide bomber for Trump.” When they find out that I also have black ancestry, I’m called a “slave girl who likes getting it from the white master.” I’ve been told by people — men and women — that they hope I’m raped, they hope I’m killed, they hope I’m kicked out of America. I’ve been told that I don’t deserve to be a woman because, according to them, I don’t support women’s rights. I’ve been called a traitor to my “own kind.” My own kind? So, “my kind” is different than other Americans? I’ve been told so much more, but some things I’ve heard I’d never repeat, and I would rather forget. This has all happened simply because I choose to have a mind of my own and think for myself.The sad fact is that the vast majority of the people attacking me with so much hate have been white Democrats. So, in their minds, I’m not capable of thinking for myself and creating my own decisions.In their minds, people of color must think, and feel, like they tell us to. White Democrats — especially those in power — still think themselves superior to people of color. They are constantly marginalizing us by race and pointing out the fact that we are “different” because of our skin color. They hate when we step outside of the box they try to use to contain our minds. In their eyes, if we step out of line and disagree with them, then we need to be punished. The only difference between racists then and now is that they've traded white hoods for suits and burning crosses for legislation. Their bounty hunters now wear black masks and call themselves “Antifa.” Instead of a plantation, they put people of color in ghettos and section eight housing. They make us dependent on them for food and other monetary needs. They tell us that they’re doing this for our good because the world doesn’t want to see us succeed and we can’t expect help from anyone but them. I’ve lived in those ghettos and those slums. The despair, poverty and hopelessness run rampant. They chain you down and so many people never break free from those chains because they actually believe that there’s a world out there they can’t succeed in.[AdSense-A]If a doctor consistently tells me that, even though I have perfectly good legs, I should never try and use them because they’ll only fail me, is he the problem or is it my legs? Race isn’t the problem here; it’s the people who are constantly telling us that we are going to fail because of our race. If that same doctor tells me that I might be able to walk with special considerations, such as braces, wheelchairs and crutches, then he’s telling me that he has no faith in me or my ability. To consistently tell someone that they aren’t able to make it in this world without special considerations, like scholarships based on race and job offerings based on color, are the most racist things I’ve ever heard of. In essence, people of color are being told that they aren’t capable of making it in this world without the white man’s help.To be told that my ability is less because my race makes me less capable is infuriating. If I want something, I will work for it. I want to earn what I achieve, not be handed something because I’m told I’m not capable of receiving it any other way.  How is that not the most insulting and racist mindset? How are people of color OK with being treated like that? With being told to sit down and shut up, unless they are going to speak, word for word, what the master tells them to say?Everyone who says that racism is still a problem is telling the truth. Racism still very much exists in this world, only today its new name is “progressivism” and “social justice.” If you dare to disagree with the Democrats or the leftist ideology, you are automatically reminded of “who you are” and why you should be thinking a specific way and voting for a certain ideology. They see the mind as their property and they brand it with the same rhetoric. Slavery of the mind still walks this country under the guise of “political correctness.” Segregation still walks this country under the guise of “progress.” I’ve seen the left slowly reintegrate segregation while making minorities think it was their idea. “No white people” days on college campuses. “Blacks only” graduation ceremonies across the nation. What’s next? Separate places of business? Segregated public transportation? Segregated entryways? Segregation is very much on the agenda of the elite left, only this time, they’ve figured out that if they use minorities as the ones to bring it back, then they won’t fight against it because they’ll view it as their idea. Ask any conservative person of color who has had their eyes opened and their minds set free, and they will tell you that racism is still very much alive.When I saw what the left was trying to do, I realized that I wanted no part of such a racist ideology. As a conservative, I believe that we are more than just our skin color and our ethnicity. I believe we all have the freedom to choose our own beliefs and our own political perspective. I believe that freedom shouldn’t be trampled on or taken lightly. I believe that every man and woman should be judged on the inside and not the outside. I do believe that we should be proud of our heritage and embrace our backgrounds, but we can’t let race become the definition of who we are. At the end of it all, your race isn’t what you take with you. It’s going to be your spirit and your heart that lasts forever. The truth inside of you and the depth of your soul are the things that will define you and the parts of you that will never die. Above all, we must never forget that, whatever our skin color, we are, first and foremost, Americans and that should be the greatest unifying identity of all. So, I’ll end with these words from a great American patriot, President Donald Trump:“It is time to remember that old wisdom our soldiers will never forget: that whether we are black, or brown, or white, we all bleed the same red blood of patriots. We all enjoy the same glorious freedoms, and we all salute the same great American flag.”