The Worst

Orchestrating Mass Ignorance

We don’t burn, drown, or throw witches off cliffs anymore, but our mob-mentality hasn’t diminished. We can still be whipped into a frenzy about things we perceive to be unjust. In fact, there are certain subjects that are so taboo, that we can’t have honest conversations about them anymore. Lately, censorship (and the expectation of self-censorship) has become accepted as normal. When people choose to engage in an honest conversation, or choose to not censor themselves, should we be infuriated if their opinions don’t align with our own? Should we organize a mob to lynch the person?

Bigots are the new witches in our society. When we hear situations of individuals saying racist or homophobic things, we’re often quick to judge them a racist or homophobe. Anyone who expresses their opinion on a regular basis has probably experienced a situation where something they’ve said was taken out of context. I don’t think we should be judging people based on things they say, especially if it’s taken out of context.

Bigotry isn’t black and white; although many people would disagree with me. I believe there’s a difference between someone like Donald Sterling and someone like Tom Metzger. They both may have some deep seeded racist views, but Sterling is a lighter shade of grey than Metzger. There are many forms of racism that exist, and I don’t believe they’re all equally bad. There are some forms of racism (i.e. white supremacy) that should be actively waged war against. There are other, more subtle, forms of bigotry that need a different solution.

There’s a legacy of racism, homophobia, elitism, sexism, nepotism, etc. that’s been deeply engrained into many individuals minds; especially those old enough to remember when it was normal to think that way. The fact is, everyone has felt the sting of being excluded from something. Whether someone isn’t good enough, smart enough, popular enough; being excluded (especially unjustly excluded) is something most people can relate to. People who are justifiably excluded from something are generally ok with it. For instance, if I tried out for the Toronto Blue Jays and they told me I’m an awful baseball player; I wouldn’t make headline news. But if I was unjustifiably excluded it might. For instance, if I was an amazing baseball player and they were excluding me for my religious or political beliefs.

We have to decide what kind of society we want to live in; and live it ourselves.

I don’t think it’s the exclusionary aspect of bigotry that we really despise. I think it’s the propagation of hate that we really want to stop. I want to stop it as much as the next guy, but I don’t believe the best way to stop hate is by developing a hate for it. It’s like saying we want people to stop excluding others, so we’ll exclude them. That’s not going to work. We have to decide what kind of society we want to live in; and live it ourselves. If we want to have an inclusionary society, we need to figure out how to include people we may not like. If we want to stop hate, we need to live loving lives.

If Donald Sterling is a racist (and I don’t know if he actually believes the things he’s said on those tapes) it’s not something that just happened. It’s really not news. What is news, is that some woman taped him saying things that sound racist when listened to out of context. Accusing someone of being a racist could ruin their lives. (Much like accusing someone being a woman beater, or child molester.) It’s not an accusation that should be taken lightly; some level of investigation should be required before passing judgement in the press. If Donald Sterling is a racist, I feel sorry for him.

I pity those people who are so ignorant they judge people based on immaterial things like race, gender, or sexual orientation.

I think the correct reaction to bigotry is pity. I pity those people who are so ignorant they judge people based on immaterial things like race, gender, or sexual orientation. I think it shows how unkind our society has become, that we 7-billion people can’t figure out a way to help enlighten bigots. (Don’t get me started on the state of penal system.) If we really care about humanity, and human beings, we should aspire to being able to treat the unkind with kindness. It’s a marred reflection of our own society that Donald Sterling was able to achieve the status he has, while being (supposedly) a racist.

I’d like to believe that our society has changed enough that our next generation will have less risk of developing bigoted views. As much as I’d like to say censorship of anyone trying to spread bigoted views is appropriate; I don’t actually believe that. I think any time we hear bigotry, it’s a chance to rid ourselves of one more bigot. Bigotry isn’t rational, logical, or based on good emotions. The most effective way to stop bigotry is to change a bigots mind; and have him spread the realization he’s had. It’s a lot harder to reform someone, than to simply isolate them — and let them rot in their own hate.