I want everyone to remember the first moment they were in elementary school and learned black people were enslaved only a few generations ago in the United States or that women could not vote less than a century ago. The first time you learned about the dark parts of history, how did you feel?
I remember I was shocked. I was sad. I was confused. I was unable to comprehend the tragic history of humankind. Somewhere along the line though, the shock value went away.
The moments were still tragic to reflect on, but the idea that they had existed became normalized. They’re just history. My teachers all told me that people had fought hard and injustices had been overcome.
Luckily, in many ways, they were right. Women and men of all races before me fought relentlessly to change the U.S. in important ways. Peaceful protests took place, important words were spoken, laws changed and many attitudes changed with them.
This election, though, I have noticed some of these attitudes have slipped through the cracks and are still alive in many people’s opinions today.
We all know one thing we love about the U.S. is freedom of speech. These people are and should be allowed to say what they want about their beliefs.
That doesn’t mean my heart does not break when I hear them. It also doesn’t mean if someone’s beliefs directly attack the identity of another person that I won’t stand up for that person.
I hope our president-elect changes the way he talks about many groups and begins to set a positive example for what rhetoric should be the American norm.
More importantly, though, I hope we all grow comfortable becoming vocal in our own lives. This scary language existed before our election; I have heard and seen it, and I have been silent.
Therefore, I will be the first to admit that it is so much easier said than done.
It is one thing to like a Facebook post and show support, but it is another to hear someone say something wrong and hurtful and have the strength to say something. I realize now that we should all make this a priority.
I don’t believe in fighting with violence, but I do believe in speaking up to stand for what I believe. We should all learn to not feel bad for letting a friend or acquaintance know, “Hey, don’t you think what you said was just pretty mean?”
Just like when we were little and saw the world with fresh eyes, we should still be saddened and angered by injustices. We should still care for other people who are not like us. We should still always make kindness our prized virtue and never underestimate the power of caring for others.
In the great words of the Beatles, love is all you need.
sdloughr@indiana.edu
