I usually don’t write much, but felt like posting my thoughts:
I’m writing because I’m upset. And the more I tell myself to calm down and let it all go – the more it upsets me. Because that is the whole problem – people not getting upset, and brushing it all aside. Or people being upset, but doing nothing about it. Not even raising a voice or talking about it. I get it. being upset and staying upset is not something people like to see. And so, you yourself begin to turn a blind eye, lower your own voice, divert attention, control your emotions – tell your heavy heart to settle – to appease those around you. Because no one likes to hear of pain and war. Of torture. Of death. No one likes to hear of injustices being made. Especially if those injustices seem so far away. And above all, no one sees themselves as complicit or having a part in sharing the burden and responsibilty of those injustices. But we are all complicit. The moment we decide to stay silent, even more so.
“An injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” – Martin Luther King
In our indifference we allow for it all to continue. And that upsets me. When we think of war, we scream never again, and yet it all happens again and again. And we all allow it. We block our ears and close our eyes and we allow it. In the case of Ukraine, there is a lot of chatter. But that is all it is. Empty words, while the violence continues, and escalates – and is even encouraged in the background, as empty words take up space in the forground. Governments and countries claim to be “so very deeply concerned”, while they provide arms to Russia, even following #MH17. The way the world media carefully chooses words to downplay the the Russia-Ukraine “conflict.” It is simply sickening.
“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference” – Elie Wiesel
It is a War. It is a war that extends to all areas of the world. An intricate web, planting roots every which way. Follow the money trail. Follow the arms deals. Follow the intricate network of connections. No one can claim their hands are clean. No one has the right to point the finger without first looking at themselves. What are you doing to stop this situation? What are you doing to hold your government accountable. Are you purchasing (and in turn helping fund) those directly implicit in all this? What are you doing to stop this mess? I can assure you, it won’t stop on it’s own. But I guess we can all just close our eyes and plug our ears. Maybe win a bit more time and allow ourselves to live happily in our indifference, until something hits closer to home.
As long as it’s happening “over there” it’s ok. But “over there” is growing closer and closer… At what point does “over there” cease to be a justifiable answer to our inaction?
“It is not enough to be compassionate – you must act.” – Dali Lama
Maybe when the “over there” will get close enough, we will get upset enough. And maybe then we will decide to try to make a difference. Or maybe we will simply decide to turn away and choose silence, as that is all we have ever known. In that case I really do not know what more to say about humanity, and the morals and values we have thought to have had.
So, how do you restore humanity to such an inhuman situation. And where does responsibility lie?
Before you can restore humanity you must define what is humane to you. What kind of world do you want to live in?
We are told that wars have sides, but in reality wars only have people who suffer and the suffering continues until there is an end. Anger only blinds. Violence only further breeds more violence. We must act from a source of empathy. Our responsibility should at least lie in keeping ourselves informed, then holding ourselves accountable in making sure, in the very least, we are not supporting the violence – knowingly or unknowingly.
Making no statement, is a statement. It allows the leniency for all this to continue.
Get informed. Speak up. Take action. Anything. But don’t do nothing. Please. For the freaking sake of humanity.
“Science may have found a cure for most evils; but it has found no remedy for the worst of them all — the apathy of human beings.”
-Helen Keller
And please:
“Be the change you wish to see in the world”
– Gandhi
