After this past weekend filled with the tragedies of the Orlando massacre and the murder of Christina Grimmie, my heart was broken and my mind was racing a million miles a minute. Too many innocent lives are being taken, and they are being taken for no reason besides hate, intolerance and a lack of love within our society.
At the concert/meet and greet where Christina Grimmie was murdered, security did not check bags, armed officers were not hired, and the venue did not have metal detectors. With security not doing their job and not checking bags, two guns with extra ammunition and a hunting knife easily entered the venue, resulting in a tragedy that could have been prevented. When I read that there weren't security measures taken upon entry, I was shocked. At the last concert I went to, there were not just security guards, but police officers circulating the venue. Upon entry, my bag was searched in-depth by a security guard as I walked through a metal detector. It was a small process, yet it was for the safety of every person in the venue. For that, I am thankful.
While such tragedies seem to unite society into making a change, these tragedies also bring multitudes of questions and political arguments, which in my opinion, seem to increase the amount of negativity, fear, and hate.
Are we unsafe because there are too many guns? Are we unsafe because people are scared of guns? Is our security decreasing because people are not doing their jobs properly? Are we always in danger because there is such deep-rooted hatred within people in society and not enough love?
I do not have an answer. There is never a clear answer. One person will say this, another will say that. People will argue and hate on those who oppose them because they believe they are 100 percent correct. Yet, how can one be correct when no one knows the answer? We argue and we all try to put blame on a race, a religion, a weapon—yet we rarely talk about the individual and the lack of humanity and love.
As a society, when did we choose hate over love? Ever since I was little, I was always told, “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all. Always kill them with kindness.” So far, being kind, even to those who are unkind to me, always makes me feel better. I would rather rise than fall.
We are a mixture of different races, genders, sexual orientations, religions and more—but that is not what matters. What matters, is at the end of the day, we are all humans. Humans that have families, friends and different dreams and passions and interests—humans that are capable of love and support and success. If we are capable of such things, why, as a society, is there such a lack of love?
I don’t know the answer to that. I don’t think anyone does. Again, it is one of those questions that arises that we can ponder and attempt to answer; however, it is a question without a set answer.
The main question here is, how can we rise from these tragedies? How can we increase the amount of love and respect we have for each other? How do we diminish hatred and intolerance?
Despite how complicated the media, the government and more want to make it, I’d say it is pretty simple. In my brain, it is a combination of two quotes.
Quoting Selena’s song, "Kill 'Em With Kindness," "We don’t have to fall from grace, put down the weapons you fight with, kill ‘em with kindness.” It’s as simple as that. Rise and be kind. Additionally, as stated by Robert Ingersoll, “We rise from lifting others.”
If you are reading this article, I challenge you to rise. I challenge you to be kind and lift others up. Something as simple as a smile can go a long way.
If we exude positivity and kindness, even in the simplest of ways, such as saying hello to someone passing by, instead of spewing negativity and hatred, the world would be a better place.
