Have you picked up on people talking in terms of “us” and “them”? During tough times, when a country is in a particularly trying state of affairs, some folks tend to look of a scapegoat. They point their fingers at these citizens and start rumors that “they” are the cause, the reason why things in the world are in such a sorry state. Unfortunately, when folks are really down and looking for a way out of their pain, they have a strong tendency to believe rumors that are really harmful about others. Evil or misdirected bullies will use this knowledge to get people on their side against individuals or groups in order to do them harm. Their mission is to use this psychology to encourage the masses to follow their twisted ways of thinking and, in turn, pull people over to their ideology. When this happens, a hate group emerges.
Haters seem to be out in full force these days. We’ve got haters expressing their disgust, cyber-bullies who get their kicks by picking on those online who appear to be easy targets. Some find this behavior fun and amusing so they jump on the bandwagon and group together for sport. We’ve got haters in the workplace making jokes about those they despise, and when questioned about their distasteful humor, saying they just find the jokes funny. We’ve got haters wanting to push minors out of the country and even wanting to see certain groups annihilated off the face of the planet. Hate is everywhere…and if we want to see less of it, we have got to face the problem head-on.
How about just focusing on the positive? Although that’s good, knowing what’s going on is vital to survival. Take off those rose-colored glasses and see the world as it is (good and bad). This is the only way to make change. I’ve met people who don’t realize how much hatred is in the world because they aren’t exposed to it (they’re not in any of the targeted groups for discrimination)…they’re oblivious and perhaps also in denial. You don’t have to be targeted to have compassion for those who are; you just have to have empathy to care about others.
Take a look around. What’s going on right where you live and work? Can you have feelings for people of different races, creeds, religions and color? Do you stand up for victims or just keep silent because you fear the haters or don’t care? I’m not trying to make you feel horrible; I’m trying to help you become more aware that this insanity is out there so that you can do your part to stop it.
There will be no justice in the world until we begin to see all people as one, part of a whole, rather than different. You can’t make a difference to all, but I promise you can make a difference to one. And that small step is actually infinitely large.