Today (and long before that), our identities have so much significance to our society and us. A lot of us factor in every little detail about ourselves to our identity. Of course, there are the more prominent identities: gender, race, nationality, sexual orientation, etc. These attributes are generally accessible to the public. If you look at me, you know that I am white.
Then there are identities that are less likely to be outright seen. They are quite subjective to the individual. On any given social platform, I see more and more identities pop up – some of which I would have never expected a person to identity as. From an outsider’s perspective, some of these factors seem outlandish. They don’t make sense to us. In some cases, this may cause the outsider to be hostile because they don’t understand why someone is identifying a particular way. Perhaps they believe that an identity goes against their moral codes or it excludes certain demographics. In any case, buying into a stigma of a particular identity probably means that the outsider has an identity that conflicts with the former.
We have given endless preaching on accepting one's fellow peers. We try so hard to obtain union amongst a hugely diverse population. With this in mind, along with having more than one identity for every person in the world, it is unfortunately difficult to see a light at the end of the tunnel. How we can possibly come together when there is so much difference? The simple answer is to try to reach our goal of comprehensive acceptance -- for everyone to accept one another's identity. But how often do simple answers work on a global level?
What if we were to not give a name to our identities? Instead of concerning ourselves with putting on a label, we could just be. We already exist as we are. We take it a step further by giving it a name. Do I honestly believe that humans will one day just drop everything we call ourselves and wordlessly live it out? Absolutely not. I think we are more concerned with identification than ever before. More than half of the people you see on social platforms put a list of what they identify as in their bio. But it's definitely something to question. Why do we care so much? I think most people would say that they put it out there, so people can get a read on who they are. That answer is just the tip of the iceberg.
Identity is a huge part of our lives. It allows us to give an insight as to who we are as individuals, be a part of a particular community, and even just have a definitive understanding of ourselves. I just like to think about what if we dropped it all? What if I no longer thought of myself as a feminist, a writer, an introvert? I could exist and not have to worry about labeling myself for others to read. I could express myself through my actions, letting myself silently be known.
Of course, identity is vast and ambiguous subject. A twenty-year-old has no business in trying to comprehend the dismantling of it -- the consequences of it. But it's these big, worldly topics that apply to everyone that spark an interest in me. Thinking about things on a global level sometimes makes your brain hurt, but it's fascinating. We are so much more than just ourselves.
