To the editor:

I agree with Joseph Bass (“Self respect and the respect of others,” Nov. 8) that self respect and the respect of others are important.

However, I wonder if he was implying that people lack self respect and have problems, because they use government programs.

There’s a negative view towards people who use government programs. People who use welfare, food stamps or other programs are accused of being lazy, immoral or unproductive.

That’s probably the case with some, but not everyone who uses government assistance is like that. I have met people that use government assistance, and they have more self respect than some who have a decent job and don’t use government assistance.

They believe in working hard, and they are willing to sacrifice for their families. They want life to be better for themselves and for their families, but right now, it’s hard, and society is still biased when it comes to race and the workplace.

First, people don’t get hired overnight; it’s a long process. You can fill out all the applications, send out resumes and call for follow-ups, but it’s not a guarantee that you will get a job right away. Searching and getting a job doesn’t happen overnight.

As a college graduate, I know firsthand how difficult it is to get a job. After I graduated from college, I applied to as many job openings as I could. It took me six months of searching and applying to finally get a job.

As for Native Americans, they have contributed to American society, and so often, we take this for granted. We owe them our gratitude, because they are the backbone of the United States.

We can’t just say that the origin of their struggling comes from using government programs. No, it’s because some people still discriminate against Native Americans and other minorities, and those people are often in the workplace.

Something needs to be done about workplace discrimination, because even though I might have all the qualifications, I can still be discriminated against because of my ethnicity.

There’s an episode of “That’s So Raven” entitled, “True Colors.” It perfectly shows what’s happening in America regarding race and the workplace.

If you’re concerned about people having what they need, please tell the companies that they need to work more on race relations and providing decent jobs.

Kenya Smith

Suffolk