Welcome to the discriminatory rat race where not fitting an acceptable description is an incorrect way of life. Realities of pure survival for people and people of color in America are pretty pervasive when becoming a victim of unfortunate circumstances beyond one’s scope of comprehension.

The message these minorities receive is this: you don’t belong here, and no matter what, it will not be accepted by the colorless (white) status quo.

James Byrd of Tyler, Texas, was walking alone one night to his home on a deserted road on the way from his niece’s bridal shower when three white men gave him a ride in their pickup truck.

Rather than being gracious hosts, by letting him sit in the truck, these “hosts” decided to tie him against it by his ankles. Mr. Byrd was dragged for two miles, finally resulting in having his entire body dismembered along the road as a racist gesture. There are no real excuses for acting out such horrific incidents of dragging someone just because of his or her race along a darkened road by others who are overtly intolerant.

It is not right.

It’s dangerous to be black and walking down the road.

Childbirth is usually a positive experience for most women. Unless you are Mrs. Chavez in Northridge, Ca., who is currently suing Medi-Cal (with 12 other poor women) and her anesthesiologist for class discrimination, when in the middle of delivering her fifth child, she needed anesthesia to continue with the birthing process.

Mrs. Chavez was denied anesthesia because of a $400 cash fee which must be paid up-front before any additional medical treatment can be administered by an anesthesiologist.

Despite having a credit card, a check and a Western Union cash confirmation form in her possession as financial substitutes in the place of cash.

These options were deemed to be totally unacceptable by her anesthesiologist during delivery since they were considered a part of the Medi-Cal payment plan!

If Mrs. Cahvez were a white expectant mother in Simi Valley, California, also under the same circumstances, there would be no barriers for obtaining access to anesthesia during labor.

Denial of medical assistance happens at health care facilities, including Mary Greeley Medical Center, where a person can be openly denied further treatment due to their inability to pay.

It is not right.

It’s dangerous to be a Latina, pregnant and poor.

President Clinton and Vice President Gore want every school child in America to log on to the “Information Superhighway” within the next several years.

However, there is one major problem with their modest proposal: Only the school children from affluent communities can easily log on.

Since children who are from poorer urban and rural schools are already having great difficulty even hooking up to the Internet when computers in their schools are either nonexistent or outdated, this plan further distances them from the overall benefits of the fluid technological revolution.

Kids here in Ames can easily get on line to the “Information Superhighway” from either school or home, whereas their less affluent counterparts in urban and rural areas cannot do the same thing.

It is not right.

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Adrian De Vore is a senior in hotel, restaurant and institution management from Newark, N.J.