Discrimination in the heart of our town
Kristine M. Rosario
senior
In the 21st century many would like to believe that our society has made some progress against intolerance and racial discrimination. Like many, I believed this to be true. But after last Thursday night I now realize that there is still a long way to go in the advancement of equality and tolerance.
As part of Notre Dame's nightlife traditions, my friends and I gather and release a week's worth of stress at Heartland. This past Thursday was no exception, and so we drove off expecting to have a great time.
As we approached the door there was the usual line, but instantly we realized the bouncers were stricter about checking I.D.'s, obviously due to the Boat Club bust a week before. As I reached the door I showed my license and student I.D. to the bouncer who quickly became quite skeptical about its authenticity.
I am from Puerto Rico. For all those who haven't seen an official Puerto Rican license, I must admit that it looks quite phony and easily replicable, but it is an official US government I.D. Since turning 21 last year I have seen this usual reaction, but all bars usually have the handy I.D. book in which the Puerto Rican license appears, so they can then verify its authenticity.
After staring at my I.D. for two minutes and blinding me with that annoying flashlight to verify my picture, the bouncer asked me for my passport. This bouncer has seen this I.D. almost every Thursday in the past year and not once gave me a hard time about it, but I calmly answered that I did have a passport but that it was not a document that I, or anyone I know of, carried into such establishment.
He replied that without a passport I would not be granted entrance to the club since he believed my I.D. not to be valid. Adding to those remarks he ignorantly stated to me, "well don't you need your passport to get into this country?"
Now if this bouncer had taken U.S. history in high school he would have known that Puerto Rico is, officially, a United States territory and, hence, all Puerto Ricans are United States citizens having no need to use any sort of passport or visa.
I clearly informed the bouncer of this and expressed how I could not understand why he was making a big deal about this whole situation since I go there almost every Thursday night and have never encountered this problem.
He refused to answer me and, given my frustration, decided not to make a scene and just to turn around and walk away. But when I turned around the bouncer simply stated, "we don't want Puerto Ricans here anyway."
I was upset for being turned away from Heartland without a valid reason, but I accepted the fact that they had to be more stringent on admittance. There was, however, no need to make such reference to my ethnicity. To some it may seem as overreacting, but such racial slurs carry so much injury to the people that are susceptible to discrimination.
The purpose of my letter to The Observer is to inform the student body of what happened to me, and to create awareness of this delicate subject among my peers. Ignoring it would be acceptance, and I refuse not to do something to fight back against sentiments of bigotry and intolerance.
My hope is that this event will help people think more about what they say and reassess their own prejudices. I truly hope this occurrence is not repeated.
As for my friends and I, this will not happen again because we will no longer be patrons of an establishment that hires people that discriminate. My friends and I urge fellow Domers to sympathize with my situation and make a statement against discrimination at Heartland this Thursday by not going. Besides, there are other fine yachting establishments that need our support right now.
Kristine M. Rosario
senior
Lyons Hall
Feb. 4
All Viewpoint Stories for Wednesday, February 5, 2003
