Guys, it's 2019 - if there is one thing that is important in this day in age, it's learning to voice your opinion. The use of media is super convenient when it comes to having our voices be heard. From Amazon product reviews to your take on our president, we can always count on the media to repeat our thoughts onto the public.

A lot of the time, voicing our opinions are encouraged. For instance, in my classes, every single one of my professors encourages - if not requires - their students to participate in a group discussion. As someone who loves talking, this is awesome, in my opinion (see what I did there?) Anyway, that's accepted. In fact, it is our right to voice our own opinions *cough *- the first amendment* so who am I, a sophomore in college, to question that? Well, my name is Jamie, and I'm here to tell you why I am against voicing your opinion on certain topics.

As I had mentioned earlier, the media is a fantastic resource to public display your opinions on, honestly, anything. That includes the social media platform, YouTube. Many of you may be familiar with Lilly Singh, an iconic Youtuber with millions of subscribers. If that name doesn't ring a bell, perhaps her channel, IISuperwomanII will. Anyways, on June 18, 2018, she uploaded what is one of my favorite videos, "A Therapy Session For Homophobic People." I love this video for two reasons: First, my career goal is to be a psychologist (or social worker) and have therapy sessions with clients, and second, I'm a HUGE supporter of those who identify as LGBTQ+, like Lilly.

So the video is about this hate comment Lilly sees. It was a woman, Jenny, who wrote her opinion on gay people, saying that marriage is for a man and woman, only. (LOL) Afterward, Lilly pulls this person from her computer screen and has her sit down and they talk. The whole session is a mix of humor and straight up facts. There was a line that stuck with me.

Lilly and Jenny are discussing how Jenny must be "religiously woke" if she is able to communicate with G-d, being Jenny is hiding behind religion

Jenny: "Stop bullying me, I am entitled to my own opinion, this isn't fair."

Lilly: "I am so sorry that you are a victim of bullying. That...[not relavant to the quote]...but your opinions and similar ideas contribute to actual laws being made against gay people. So if you have an opinion about pineapples on pizza, I don't care. But it's illegal to be gay in some countries. Imagine the government took away your right to be yourself."

The video ended with Lilly (the doctor) prescribing Jenny with a bottle of common sense, telling her to take two tablets daily while listening to Sam Smith, warning her that side effects may include minding her own damn business. Jenny then says that sounds complicated and asks if she can go over it again over dinner. The perfect comedic ending to make this heavy content a little lighter.

But this isn't a funny matter.

Luckily we are adapting and advancing at a speed that allows humans to enjoy their basic human rights regardless of sexual orientation. But it doesn't just stop at sexuality. I tutor a class and a topic they learn about is prejudice. To allow them to further understand, I give examples:

Homophobia

Racism

Ageism

Anti-Semitism

Sexism

Xenophobia

Religious intolerance

Classism

...and so much more

I emphasize that to be prejudice is to have a certain feeling towards a group of people. To be honest, I cannot think of a more simple and better definition. Prejudice typically stems from stereotyping. Stereotyping literally means to think of other people differently, which is an OPINION.

Now, I'm not saying to stop prejudging, cause I do that and it's impossible to stop. It's human nature. What I am saying is to stop voicing your opinions if it is HURTING OR DISCRIMINATING AGAINST PEOPLE WHO WILL NOT HURT YOU OR ANYONE ELSE.

Take this scenario, for instance:

You are a straight, cisgender, white male living in a very diverse neighborhood. You have black neighbors, you have some LGBTQ neighbors, some neighbors of different religions like you, and you have neighbors who don't make the same amount of money as you do. One day, your neighbor, Peter, whose name at birth was Penelope, knocks on your door and invites you to his and his husband's annual BBQ. You smile and say you would love to go. The day before the BBQ occurs, you run to the supermarket to pick up a fruit platter as your way of saying thank you for the invite. The BBQ is in five minutes. You grab your stuff, walk down the block, and have a good ass time there. You give the hosts the platter, in which they thank you with a hug. You go in for it and carry on with your life. Congratulations, you treated these humans as humans. You are a good person.

Now take this scenario:

You are a straight, cisgender, white male living in a very diverse neighborhood. You have black neighbors, you have some LGBTQ neighbors, some neighbors of different religions like you, and you have neighbors who don't make the same amount of money as you do. One day, your neighbor, Peter, whose name at birth was Penelope, knocks on your door and invites you to his and his husband's annual BBQ. You smile and say you already have plans for that day, even though that was a lie. Peter say's "alright, enjoy your plans. Hope to see you around," and walks away. You kindly wish him well and shut the door as he walks away. On the inside, however, you shivered and thought "I would never enjoy my time there knowing they're trans." But you keep that thought to yourself. You didn't lash out on Peter, and more importantly, you didn't take it to the internet to recap this encounter and adding how disgusted you were - because you know that these are friendly people. You may not agree with their lifestyle, but that doesn't mean you have to rain on their parade by berating them either. Congratulations, you treated this human as a human. You are a good person.

The bottom line is that we're all equal. Plain and simple. No matter how you feel towards a group of people, the fact that they are a human being is what comes first. As long as they're not causing any damage, why must you intervene? Just move on with your life because no one has time for this - we left that negativity in 2018.

Thank you for coming to my TedTalklookhuman.com