Keeping Our Eyes on the Prize

By Ricky Marte

On Tuesday, our journalism class watched Eyes on the Prize, a film about the African-American civil rights movement. The most impressive part of this film is how historically accurate it is. Many historical films and documentaries feature "experts" and "historians" talking about the civil rights movements. Eyes on the Prize features mostly videos and commentary from people directly involved in the civil rights movement. It is an excellently made video, by people who did their research the right way. That however, is where my interest for this video ends.

I have always had a great awareness about the injustices that the African-American communities throughout the United States have suffered. Not only this, but I have done research on the Apartheid movement in South Africa, and even earlier in history the slave trade from Africa. Treating people differently in any circumstances is completely and utterly disgusting and unacceptable. So the fact the African-Americans and their African descendants suffered this revolting treatment during multiple times in history makes me sick.

Equality is a fundamental part of American history, and it is the reason that we are the powerhouse country that we are. No one deserves to be treated differently based on the color of their skin.

The white people that were against the equality of the colored people committed some acts that were just completely unacceptable. They let dogs loose on protesters. They opened fire extinguishers and sprayed protesters down with hoses. They didn't discriminate either. They went so low as to hit little boys and girls with the fire extinguishers. These people committed some atrocities. It makes me angry every time I think about it, or do research about it. It made me angry to watch an hour long video about it. This gross, dirty stain on American history should make anyone who knows about it angry too.