by Kenya Smith

In the 1980s, pop singer Cyndi Lauper released a song titled “True Colors.” This song is very different from Lauper’s more fun and upbeat songs such as “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” but like most of her other songs, the message is positive.

The chorus goes like this: “I see your true colors shining through. I see your true colors, and that’s why I love you. So don’t be afraid to let them show. Your true colors, true colors are beautiful like a rainbow.”

“True Colors” is a song of encouragement and comfort, especially to people who are afraid of being themselves. While this song says that a person’s true color can be beautiful like a rainbow, we’ll use the title of the song to show another set of true colors.

In a society that is still riddled with hatred and bigotry, it seems that the true colors of some people are starting to shine through. Take, for instance, the incident that happened at a Holiday Inn Express where a woman called a black hotel clerk the N-word. When the worker called her out on the slur, she immediately tried to explain that she was having a bad day. However, it was too late. The clerk refused to book a room for the woman and later said, “It’s above me now.”

In Alabama, a mayor suggested on Facebook that killing LGBTQ individuals, pro-choice advocates and socialists was the only way to fix society. When asked about the comments, the mayor denied that he made such comments. Then, he backtracked and blamed Facebook’s privacy settings. He then admitted to making the comments, yet claimed that his comments were taken out of context. As a result of the controversy, people have petitioned for him to step down as mayor.

Recently, a Tennessee detective, who is also a pastor, called for the execution of the LGBTQ community during a sermon, which can be seen on video. The restaurant chain Cracker Barrel decided to cancel an event that the pastor and detective had planned as a response to his hate-filled sermon.

This month, five teenaged boys attacked Melania Geymonat and her partner, Chris, on a bus in London. It started when the boys pressured the two women to kiss each other and they refused. A photo shows the frightened women with blood on their face and clothes. The boys were arrested for the homophobic attack. Carl Craven and Braden Brecht, a young gay couple from Virginia Beach, were robbed and beaten during their trip to Washington, D.C. Their attackers also used anti-gay slurs. There are pictures that show the injuries that the two men, especially Brecht, sustained.

There has also been an ongoing killing spree of transgender women of color in this country.

These incidents show that true colors can be ugly, especially when it’s against certain groups of people. People can try to hide their true colors towards people, but they will always shine through.

Kenya Smith is a Suffolk native. Email her at s.kenya43@yahoo.com.