Abraham Joshua Heschel: Racism Analysis

Abraham Joshua Heschel once said, “Racism is man's gravest threat to man - the maximum of hatred for a minimum of reason.” My beliefs and my grandparent’s beliefs on racism differ with language, disrespect, and the mistreatment of other human beings.
Overtime every generation develops their own “language,” and some of that language can be considered racist in today’s time. Growing up you hear certain words used by people your age that older people do not use. People say “swag” or “lit” and we are okay with it. This is also the same situation for my grandparents where they used certain words that were once “okay.” Language is ever changing, and most likely a word we use now maybe considered wrong in the future.
Being raised in this age of time, I grew up being taught everyone was equal where as my grandparents may have been taught another mindset. The way we act is based on our surroundings. I myself am surrounded by a very liberal household while my grandparents were raised around the end of the depression.
Going so far to ask for different servers, nurses and handymen. They were raised with the mindset of not being white was wrong. My Grandmother, on my eleventh birthday, took me to Walmart for my present I asked for “Pokemon Black,” and she refused to buy it for me. She then made me get “Pokemon White” instead. During my grandfather’s later years before his passing my grandmother fired the nurse because she was, “of color.” Living with my grandparents, I witness firsthand the difference in treatment they gave to people.
The beliefs of my grandparents on racism differ from mine because of their surroundings growing up. If I was to grow up around the same time they did. I may also think the same. If they were to grow up around my time, they may think differently. Racism is not a trait it is taught and it’s a lesson that needs to be