We are hurting.

The past month has seen some unspeakable things, both in our United States and around the world. There have been horrible, mindless tragedies, and there has been so much controversy and debate surrounding them that many of us can hardly bear to open their browsers or turn on the television. However, shutting yourself away from the discourse can further the problems we face.

Seeing the hurt, pain, loss, agony and anger that the tragedies cause the communities of the people involved makes my heart twist. Personally, I have not been a part of any community that has lost lives. As a middle class, cisgender, able-bodied white person, I have a certain amount of privilege that allows me to feel safe most of the time. I cannot pretend that I know how it feels to be systematically oppressed simply for factors of my personhood that I cannot control. However, as a fellow citizen – a fellow human being — I can and will always give my full support and empathy to those who have been and are affected by the senseless tragedies the world has seen of late.

So often, people dismiss crimes against people who are different from them, especially if the people have been systematically oppressed throughout history. This is problematic for many reasons, but in my opinion, the main issue is because this continues the cycle of violence. The only way to prevent these issues is to attempt to understand. People cannot always easily get inside the heads of people and communities who have had different experiences — either in one lifetime or throughout history — simply because they have never attempted to. This gets worse as time passes. The more set in their ways people are, the more difficult it becomes to remove them from their own headspace in order to see the world from a different set of eyes.

I advise you — no, I urge you to try your best to understand the struggles and the strife of those different from you. Do not dismiss acts of violence against any community. Do, however, make an effort to show your support for those who may not have a strong voice of their own, especially if the reason is for something they cannot control.