Thread: God Bless Mexico

ClockworkHeart said So what were these guys standing up to, exactly? Click to expand... An infringement on their First Amendment rights, specifically the freedom of speechexpression. ClockworkHeart said Is it really that hard to not say Y'know, today is a Hispanic holiday, and I go to school with a lot of Hispanic people. Maybe I can go one day without being intentionally abrasive as a show of support for my fellow human beings. Click to expand... Yeah, it honestly is. They weren't doing anything but keeping to themselves. As Hahvy said, I also didn't know it was even Cinco de Mayo until someone pointed it out - it's not my background, and therefor wholly irrelevant to me. I don't keep track of holidays for every race, gender, religion and cultural background, and it especially has no relevance on my choice of attire. ClockworkHeart said The tone of the situation really leads me to believe they were trying to send a message of intolerance, which is one of the most un-American things I can think to do. Click to expand... That can be boomeranged right back. The students of Mexican heritage were being intolerant of others. ClockworkHeart said I think the fact that they went to the media about it combined with the fact that they all just happened to wear shirts like that and are making a big fuss about how they were trying to be patriotic means it wasn't just a coincidental thing. Click to expand... People wear shirts like this every day. Jackets. Hats. American flag underwear. They could have 'just happened' to dress as such that day because for them, for me, for a huge percentage of the country's population it was not Cinco de Mayo it was Wednesday. ClockworkHeart said I could certainly be well off the mark on this one, but it just doesn't seem to add up as being anything but intentional to me Click to expand... And if it was? Maybe it was, I cannot deny that possibility. But again, it falls under the fact of it being their constitutional right to. And despite what you may think, standing up for your rights that those before you sacrificed greatly to pass down is indeed patriotic. Letting your rights be shoved to the backburner because someone can't get the heck over the idea it ain't all about them is where the real disrespect would be. We have a lot of rights in this country. One thing we DO NOT have the right to, is the right to not be offended. That is a necessity for everyone having their individual freedom to express themselves, because if there's one thing we can all agree on, it's that we all disagree. And if you're going to start putting limits on what I can and can't do because you feel it improper, then I get to put limits right back. Then the next person gets to add something. Then the next person gets to add something. Before long no one is allowed to do or say anything, because someone, somewhere is offended by it. Personally, I'm all for not sweating the small stuff, getting over it, and to each their own. And I've been in the Mexicans' situation myself. I'm Irish, and I still see hispanic pride displayed on St.Patrick's Day. It's not brazen. It's not offensive or outlandish, but it's there, and shrug that's their right. They're welcome to join me in the day's festivities despite their racial background, but that's up to them. It has never been even a speed bump in my freedom and ability to celebrate my heritage.