There's no feeling quite like that of being on the wrong side of prejudice like racism. Where one is meant to feel as though they don't belong in the country where they were born.

It's a truly awful and overwhelming experience.

One I wouldn't wish on anyone for any reason.

I pine for a future where we're all treated as the equals which we are.

I try to do what little I can to push forward to be able to live to see such a day.

Because it's not fair for anyone to be treated as less of a person.

We all deserve compassion, dignity and respect.

Racism isn't something that we're born with.

It's taught.

It's learned behavior.

A process of indoctrination that is focused on exaggerating perceived differences and building fear-driven hatred as a result.

We have to reverse it -- and we can.

Love can conquer hate.

The first step toward conquering our demons is facing them. Acknowledging not just the prejudices, but also the privileges.

One must be cognizant of not only how others suffer, but how they may benefit on the basis of their cultural identity, gender, class, religion, etc.

While racism is learned, privilege is given and often taken for granted.

This is where the concept of "white privilege" enters our vernacular.

Such that those who are fortunate enough to be born white will enjoy a completely different societal experience than those who aren't.

White Americans are likely to have, on average, at 10 fold the wealth of people of color. Finding gainful employment is easier. They're also 66% less likely to face arrest, prosecution or incarceration for the exact same crimes that people of color and/or less wealthy experience.

There's also that saying "the other side of the tracks" which is based in a geographic reality. One of institutionalized racism in the form of segrated communities.

In many places, even to this day, communities are separated along ethnic lines.

These relics of what should be a bygone era of segregation live on, even to this day, as so much of America has been reluctant to evolve beyond its past of giving some more and others less depending on how they look, who they know, or where they're from.

But there is hope ...

We can bring about a tomorrow where we achieve harmony for all people if we focus on breaking down these barriers of institutionalized racism, classism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia and other prejudices.

It starts by embracing a moral baseline of equality at an early age.

So as we work to repair the unfathomable darkness and horror that Emperor Covidicus and his enablers have inflicted, let's not settle for what we were.

Let's build back better.

Aspiring toward a future of equality for all--because we are all equals.