How to Change the world
Hatred is Not our Default!
When I was twelve years old, in 1970, I had the opportunity to spend the summer in France. I loved it. France opened my eyes to a new world. I lived in a village called Vinzelles, north of Lyon. On a day trip to a car museum in Lyon, I came across this Mercedes. It was one of Hitler’s armored cars. As this was only twenty-five years after the end of WWII, it seemed so real. The Mercedes passenger window had been shot at during an assassination attack, but the glass was so thick the bullet never went through. I remember touching the damaged window and glancing at the Nazi Swastika on the front fender. As an impressionable young boy from England, I recall feeling shame that other human beings could hurt and kill another human being as if they were vermin. As a disabled child, I had been called ‘Spastic’ and ‘Cripple.’ Red hair, freckles, and leg irons ensured my misery. Being different from those around me caused me great sadness. At the same time, I seemed to feel the pain of those who were other in my town.
It is fifty years on, and I have continued to see this hated disease worldwide ever since. No matter whether in Rwanda, Ethiopia, Yugoslavia, Israel, Tibet, China, USA, Australia, United Kingdom, Ireland, Afghanistan, and many more, I am reminded of Edmund Burke in his letter to Thomas Mercer in 1770, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Good people often say, “It’s none of my business.” Or “I can’t do anything.” Well, let me remind you all of a poem entitled ‘First They Came’ by Martin Niemoller:
First, they came for the Communists.
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me.
Knowledge is valuable or even vital at times; however, it is freakin’ useless unless we learn from it and apply it to our lives. Can you make a difference? Yes, of course, you damn well can. Teach your children to think critically, think independently, and not necessarily follow the crowd. Please give them the tools not to robotically follow hate or anything like it! It matters not whether you are physically disabled, mentally challenged, male, female, trans, gay, black, white, brown, yellow, red, orange, blue, small, large, tall, short, deaf, blind, dumb, aged, young, educated or not educated. It matters not whatever your religious belief is or is not. It matters not what your political persuasion is or is not. It matters not where you live or even what you live in.
We are all people. As much as some in the world disagree, all people are related. We all bleed if we are cut. We all hurt when our child hurts. We all grieve when our loved ones die. We all love the same way. It is just as easy to love people as to hate them. It is a choice, your choice. You may have been taught hate or evil, but the great news is you can unlearn hatred and relearn love and respect for all people. Hatred is not our default. Choose wisely, my friends.
