Private Jessica Lynch is a 20-year-old female, a female whosecourage was exposed to the world after her convoy was ambushed andshe was held as a prisoner of war in Iraq during March.
SinceLynch was a young female POW, the American people prayed for hersafety and that of the rest of the soldiers in her position. Herreturn home was widely publicized; in August, Lynch was honorablydischarged from the Army and, according to The Washington Post, willreceive an 80 percent disability relief from the Army.
Lynch’s book – I am a Soldier, Too: The Jessica Lynch Story – wasreleased this past Veterans Day. She has scheduled a book tour, hasappeared on several news specials, including “60 Minutes,” and wasthe inspiration behind a made-for-TV movie, Saving Jessica Lynch.
Specialist Shoshana Johnson is a 30-year-old female. She, too, wasa POW during the same ambush in Iraq. Furthermore, she was heldprisoner 11 days longer than Private Lynch. Her injuries include agunshot wound to each leg and severe signs of trauma, includingdepression and insomnia, according to The Washington Post. Her returnhome was hardly publicized.
Similar to Lynch, Johnson was also honorably discharged. However,the Army has only entitled her 30 percent disability relief for herinjuries – less than half of what Lynch was awarded.
There is no doubt both of these women went through hell while inIraq. But why is one woman receiving more attention from the mediathan the other? They are both brave women, they were both dedicatedto their position within their unit and they both were prisoners ofwar. Why is one woman being unfairly represented, while gettingsignificantly less in aid than the other? Perhaps I should mentionthe only significant difference is their skin color: Lynch is whiteand Johnson is black.
I believe a strong, black woman such as Johnson should receive anequal amount in aid from the Army as Lynch .
Johnson’s family has hired the Rev. Jesse Jackson to take her caseto the White House, Pentagon and Congress, according The WashingtonPost. Johnson showed no intention of getting the same media attentionas Lynch until it was brought to her attention that she would receiveconsiderably less aid than her counterpart.
Nobody likes to bring up race or racism. In some of my classes,when racism is discussed, it’s as if the tension in the room buildswith every mention of it. Racism is a topic our society needs todiscuss, since it is a huge part of American history. People chooseto look the other way when race is discussed because the topic is”too touchy” or “it’s not a big deal anymore.” The truth is ourcountry will never get to the point where all races are completelyequal, at least not in my lifetime. I laugh when people tell meracism doesn’t exist anymore. Although it isn’t necessarily blatant,it is definitely an underlying issue.
As a female minority, I am concerned for my future and theoppression I will be forced to face. It would be easier for me tobite my tongue when faced with the fact that I am viewed differentlybecause of my skin color. But by doing so, it allows the majority tocontinue to “unknowingly” take advantage of minorities.
It would also be easier for me to solely associate with the blackcommunity and close myself off from any other race. By doing that,though, I would be closing myself off from the rest of the world anddenying myself the right to know about other people’s experiences inlife.
Many people advocate the “one world” concept and espouse globalunity, but do not practice what they preach. Keeping Johnson in mind,it is important that all people, regardless of race, class or gender,receive what they deserve. I can only hope one day my children willnot have to face the same obstacles I am bound to face in my ownfuture.
Nevertheless, this change will not be made unless people realizethe issues at hand and are willing to change as well.
– Consuela Headrick is a journalism sophomore.
– This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of TheDaily Aztec. Send e-mail to letters@thedailyaztec.com.Anonymous letters will not be printed – include your full name, majorand year in school.
