Recently the world felt heartbreak and despair, for yet again, there was another terror attack. "Pray for Brussels" popped up in every crevice of social media. All of us keep thinking, "why must this keep happening?" It is shameful that the beauty that is the earth and the people that populate it keep getting destroyed and killed by evil. Evil does exist, but it is up to us to fight it not exacerbate it.
Malala Yousafzai said, "I truly believe the only way we can create global peace is through not only educating our minds, but our hearts and our souls." Diversity in the United States has been used as a tool to divide as evidenced by the recent presidential election. It has been used to tear people down and apart until their dignity has been stripped of them. What is scary though is that yes the candidates such as Donald Trump have spread hateful messages, and this is unacceptable. What is even more unacceptable is the fear mongering perpetuated by followers. Do you know the underlying theme of these messages and hate speech? FEAR. Stop being scared of people. As Ms. Yousafzai said, educate yourself. Open your heart. Expand your knowledge-including empathy. Why do we have compassion for a slaughtered lion in Africa and not slaughtered civilians? Why do we want to build a wall instead of building classrooms? There is so much wrong in the world at the moment, yet there is also so much beauty. If we close our minds and hearts, we will miss it. Recently the "Humans of New York" creator, Brandon Stanton, wrote an open letter to Donald Trump following his photography and storytelling series of refugees. Stanton highlights the struggles and distress that refugees have faced while humanizing them. Read the letter yourself. Can we stop politicizing religion, and instead learn about other cultures instead?
I have been blessed by the opportunity to go to such a diverse school. I came from a predominantly white community that was often referred to as "the bubble" to a school overflowing with culture and languages and color. The friends I have are Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Jewish and Buddhist. They speak Tamil, Hindi, Urdu, Arabic, English, Chinese, Spanish, Korean, etc. I can only speak English, but I am trying to learn Hindi to connect with my friends' parents better and truly understand the beauty of India which is rich in culture and history. Over the summer, I spent two months in Ireland and lived with two Muslim friends. Ramadan happened to fall during these two months. I had the privilege of learning about their culture, drama with the aunties, religious customs, and I got to eat some delicious food. If all else, I beg you to become "cultured" at least to eat the food! Seriously though, the bottom line is that you will grow, and your character will be enhanced if you take the time to really get to know someone from a different background. Though I have focused on the differences between cultures, you will probably be surprised at how much you actually have in common.
Diversity comes in many forms. It is not just about the color of someone's skin or their religious beliefs. It is also about their gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, career, among many other categories. Discrimination happens when someone views their beliefs or status as superior to someone else's. Recently, I watched the movie "The Normal Heart" which is based upon Larry Kramer's experiences and play about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s when the virus was first being discovered. In the movie, gay men were dying and dying in droves. People wanted to ignore these tragedies because they simply did not view them as tragedies. Those afflicted were denied services from people and places and definitely faced significant discrimination. There is an eerie parallel here to what is happening now in the world. We are fearful as a world. The problem is we are fearful of the wrong entity. Instead of being fearful of the HIV virus, we were fearful of the person suffering because they loved differently. Instead of being fearful of ISIS and their agenda, we are fearful of all Muslims and refugees. After much research which is wonderfully and accurately depicted in the film "And the Band Played On," the HIV virus was found to be sexually transmitted and did not discriminate based upon sexual orientation. They did not know that back then. If we go back a few more years in history we get Loving v. Virginia which was a landmark Supreme Court case that struck down laws prohibiting interracial marriage. Now, we see interracial marriage all of the time, and we no longer look upon with outrage and instead look upon with love. The realization occurred in the 1960s that black and white people were no different, and segregation of bathrooms and bedrooms was no longer acceptable. I am still waiting on these realizations to occur in regards to our Muslim brothers and sisters and people of any background that is not really understood.
Ignorance is not pretty. It is not cute. It cannot be passed off under the phrase "ignorance is bliss." Educate yourself. Go to a temple, a mosque, a library even! Pick up a book, grab a friend, and immerse yourself in a whole new world. Hate can only be fought through education, tolerance, and acceptance. I am angry that I even felt compelled to write this, but it is time we grow as a society not just as individuals.
