Warning: If you are narrow minded or not accepting of other’s differences you are advised to stop reading now.
There have always been nay-sayers and there have always been truth seekers.
People on the right side of history and people on the wrong side of history.
We live in a world with all types of people. People who are kind, and people who are bullies. For some of us it’s hard to hear so much hatred toward others. It’s extremely hard to avoid this in the modern era, where everybody shares their thoughts with the world in a matter of seconds
Every generation has it’s cause whether it’s a woman’s right to vote, the civil rights movement, or LGBTQ rights. For every hater and nay-sayer, there are truth seekers. Those who are shining light into the world, raising awareness, and furthering the cause.
Think back to the civil rights movement, when black people had to go to different schools, drink from separate water fountains and sit on different parts of the bus. There were the nay-sayers who wanted to keep them second class citizens. There were also the truth seekers, who knew this was bullshit.The truth seekers tirelessly fought against the nay-sayers and today we live in a pretty different world because of their efforts.
I bet if aliens came down from outer space and started a war with earth, we’d all forget our racial, religious, political differences because this time we’d all be on the same team.
Here’s the thing, we ARE on the same team. Team human all the way!
We’ve constructed theoretical boundaries and geographical borders separating us from one another. We forgot our collective humanness. (And then there are those who want to build an actual wall to reinforce our perceived separateness, but I digress….)
So, how do we deal with people like this?
Well…
I was recently engaged in a conversation in the comments section of an article about a transgender teen, with some people who clearly have nothing better to do with their time than talk shit about someone they don’t even know. I felt immense anger because their hatred was aimed at an innocent young man who has the courage to stand up and be himself. Furthermore, these comments attacked my values! Just like that transgender young man, I believe in being yourself, speaking your truth, and accepting others for their differences because it creates a richer world.
I was enraged, especially in the wake of the Orlando shootings. We still have so much work to do. But what it taught me was how to bring a loving and accepting attitude to negative encounters.
I really wanted to rip this guy a new one and get all preachy on him, but I realized that being hateful and preachy was what he was doing.
How could I step into the darkness that I so deeply want to eradicate and still think that I’m right?
So instead I told him that while I respect his right to his opinion, I wholeheartedly disagree, but thank him for engaging in this open dialogue, because it only furthers the public conversation about the issue. He didn’t realize it but his comments on that public forum will contribute to furthering awareness in the long run, because it got people talking. In the end he will have helped the cause he was against.
It was the people who wanted to keep segregation that fired up the leaders of the civil rights movement.Today it’s the people who narrow-mindedly want to deny rights to the LGBTQ community that get others juiced up about voicing their support. History learns from these people.
We learn how NOT to be.
If you’re one of the nay-sayers who wants to hate on your fellow man, keep on nay-saying!! For every public comment against the rights of a marginalized group, more truth seekers will pop up, ready to lead the charge forward. That’s how change happens!
And if you’re one of the truth seekers, instead of hating the haters, we can thank them for contributing to the advancement of the cause (even if it’s in sort of a backwards way).
LESSON LEARNED: Even if you really hate what someone else is saying, ALWAYS spread love, not hate.
xo,
