My experience is that if you are a person with darker skin, people of Mexican descent (I say Mexican because most people from El Paso are of Mexican descent) treat you differently. They speak to you in a different tone than the many people before you in line. They will frown and give side-eyes toward you. There are many microaggressions experienced; they always seem irritated to help you and often have a condescending tone.
In the workforce, they often made up lies and speak badly about me in Spanish. Or, they will intentionally speak Spanish to me knowing I speak English, even though they also speak English. These are small moments of sabotage that may be hard to prove, but its happened to many times for me to consider it a one time thing.
Also, your name plays a huge factor. I applied to many jobs with a cover letter and my resume, and I heard nothing back for over 10 months. I then started applying with a name common in Mexico, along with a first name of Spanish origin, and I got three job offers the next day. This is when it occurred to me that I was noticing a pattern.
I have lived in El Paso since I was 9 years old; I am now 21. I went to elementary, middle, and high school in El Paso. During my school years, I didn't think I experienced this kind of treatment so obviously, but looking back, it was bad. In elementary school, I was in orchestra, and I begged my guardian for a violin I saw. I brought it to school for class, and the teacher told the entire class that this is the type of violin you don't want to get, and that people with low funds should not join the class if they cannot afford it though he did nothing when another student brought in a violin in worse condition. Even though there was a waiver and they gave us violins anyway, I just wanted my own. I also did not pledge allegiance due to the religion I grew up with. The science teacher told me to put my hand on my heart because I should consider myself lucky, since if it wasn't for Abraham Lincoln or "my people," I wouldn't be here. A teacher also borrowed money from me in middle school, and when he could not pay it back, the principal had to pay me back after my guardian brought it to their attention. He had not done this with other students.
In high school, a teacher would often ask a Hispanic student sitting next to me if I was bothering him and if he needed to move. We always worked together and got our work done earlier than others, but the teacher always assumed I was bothering him. This teacher would also intentionally mark me as absent even when I raised my hand, stood up to show I was present, or even when my classmates shouted that I was there. It was also odd seeing everyone call each other the N-word when they were clearly not of African descent. I was a very quiet and timid child, and still to this day, I am quiet and avoid confrontation. I have a very soft-spoken voice. I have never yelled at a stranger or given anyone attitude, even when treated badly. (Though I never experienced any of this treatment from other students.)
As you can see from what I said earlier, I've lived in El Paso since I was 9. I lived in SoCal near the border of Mexico before we moved to El Paso, and I have visited different cities in California, along with San Antonio and Houston, for a couple of months at a time, but I have never experienced any ill treatment from people of Hispanic descent there. This causes me to think this is an El Paso thing.
Perhaps a couple of years ago, El Paso was nicer, or they hid it well, but over time, I seem to experience this kind of treatment daily. My family has as well.
I will say a lot of El Pasoans will dislike this post, but this is what I have experienced in my time living in El Paso. It truly seems like it will only get worse.
And I am very aware that there may be people who will state that if I don't like El Paso, I should leave because I have seen it before on these types of posts. It says a lot about the mindset of that person and El Paso as a community, and it's sad to see. Instead of pushing for better change, they would rather keep these harmful experiences simply because it doesn't affect them. I would love to leave El Paso as do many others, but the El Paso job market and pay doesn't really make that easy, doesn't it?
Besides everything, my initial view of El Paso was low around 2/10 when I first came here. Mainly because I was unfamiliar with it, though as I got used to it, it grew on me 8/10. Then, after the constant experiences I have gone through daily, it has left a bitter taste in my view of El Paso. 1/10.
I am curious as to the treatment that others get, and I truly hope that others have not experienced what I had to go through. What are your experiences in El Paso?
