Intruders, Aliens or Natives?
Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and try to remember. Have you ever been in a situation where eyes were pointing at you? Where you felt like an outsider, either intruding on someone else’s space, or alienating yourself from others, just because you did not fit in, or were not welcomed, or you were just not one of the natives?
If your answer to any of the above is a yes, then congratulations, you should statistically be familiar with what it feels to be ousted or separated from the crowd.
An eerily familiar feeling creeps down the back of the neck while watching this video by the Royal Jordanian Airlines that is going viral on social media. What is it like to be isolated in a closed space, where you cannot escape, and staying is the only option you have?
Humans in general are highly social beings. They detest being the object of ridicule or alienation. Conformity is taught to us from a very young age and we are petrified of being isolated from the crowd. Yet we all strive to stand out, to be different, to be recognized. On the surface this may seem like an oxymoron, but peel a bit further and you will understand that the urge to stand out is often restricted, sometimes propelled but ultimately falls within the strict standards of ones immediate social acceptance and cultural norms.
Now how is this related to one of the biggest humanitarian crisis that has affected us in recent times and is worsening with each passing day?
The Fear
One of the biggest fears that has risen from the recent migrant and refugee crisis is the conception that majority of people forming this incoming community will modify local demographics, nullify cultural freedom and put unwanted economic pressure on the local populations.
Even highly developed and advance societies have not been spared from the recent rise in fear and xenophobia of ‘the others’.
When ‘Them’ vs ‘Us’ becomes ‘Them’ could be ‘Us’
The reason to understand ‘what it feels like’ is needed more than ever because times are changing. Climate change, droughts, floods and wars, are leading to enforced displacements, famines, migration and refugee crisis and although it may seem like this could never happen to you or me, the fact is, our world today is not immune to isolated geopolitical wars and crisis.
We are moving towards an inter-meshed reality where man-made and natural disasters are leading to a nomadic existence, interdependence, and most often, struggles and violence for basic resources for millions, globally.
Living in delusive contentment and believing that we can remain isolated from this, is as good as believing that this emerging global crisis can be ignored or that it is someone else’s problem.
Together we stand, divided we fall
In the current climate of distrust, hate and fear, the biggest weapon we have is not a weapon at all. It is the inherent ability that we all possess. The power to hear the other side, to be open and patient to understanding differences; physical, social, and cultural, and more than ever before, to be able to distinguish lies and hate speech, from facts and real problems.
Putting faces on stories, sharing real life examples to fight half-truths, and to open mental doors that restrict and create a maze of fear and terror is what campaigns like ‘TOGETHER’ are trying to achieve through mass participation.
A global initiative, it aims to change negative perceptions and attitudes towards refugees and migrants, its core values striving to strengthen the social contract between host countries and communities, and refugees and migrants.
At the end what matters the most is empathy, our shared necessity to live in peace, and facing hard hitting realities with collective compassion and a little bit of accountability.
So close your eyes, take a deep breath, and think of possibilities, solutions and tolerance towards those who may be very different from you but want the same things in life; safety, dignity, and peace.
You may share your stories with #JoinTogether at together@un.org to show your support for millions who need it the most.
