Thinky thoughts...
"Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering."
Yoda speaks the truth. Or rather, the truth Yoda speaks. This is abundantly evident in recent clashes between police and protesters, and especially in the events that prompted the protests. The root cause is fear. Fear of scary black dudes in the hood. Fear of hair-trigger cops with something to prove. Fear of being seen as a demographic rather than a person. Fear of losing out because someone else gains. And all that churning fear bubbles over into anger. Anger about crime, about violence, about poverty, about entitlement, about inequalities, about prejudices of every stripe. The seething anger solidifies into hatred. Hatred of anybody in a certain part of town, hatred of anybody in a uniform, hatred of anybody of a certain color, class, or creed. And who suffers? Everybody. Nobody wins. Both sides suffer. Worst of all the innocent suffer, caught in the crossfire or poisoned by the hatred of those around them.
Some people like to talk about a post-racial society. Maybe we'll get there. I hope we get there. But there is more to this than race. Humans throughout history have found ways to create division amongst themselves. I think it's an unfortunate byproduct of human nature to find a way to make it us vs them. All I know is that people don't change. A person, however, can change. An individual can choose their path. And an individual can illuminate the path for other individuals. Small steps, one at a time. Which path shall we choose - fear and darkness, or love and light?
Yoda speaks the truth. Or rather, the truth Yoda speaks. This is abundantly evident in recent clashes between police and protesters, and especially in the events that prompted the protests. The root cause is fear. Fear of scary black dudes in the hood. Fear of hair-trigger cops with something to prove. Fear of being seen as a demographic rather than a person. Fear of losing out because someone else gains. And all that churning fear bubbles over into anger. Anger about crime, about violence, about poverty, about entitlement, about inequalities, about prejudices of every stripe. The seething anger solidifies into hatred. Hatred of anybody in a certain part of town, hatred of anybody in a uniform, hatred of anybody of a certain color, class, or creed. And who suffers? Everybody. Nobody wins. Both sides suffer. Worst of all the innocent suffer, caught in the crossfire or poisoned by the hatred of those around them.
Some people like to talk about a post-racial society. Maybe we'll get there. I hope we get there. But there is more to this than race. Humans throughout history have found ways to create division amongst themselves. I think it's an unfortunate byproduct of human nature to find a way to make it us vs them. All I know is that people don't change. A person, however, can change. An individual can choose their path. And an individual can illuminate the path for other individuals. Small steps, one at a time. Which path shall we choose - fear and darkness, or love and light?