“There but for the grace of God go I.”
“How,” the voice usually sounds quite righteous at this point, “could they have let that happen?”
We’ve all heard a similar comment. Maybe it was after visiting Ann Frank’s house in Amsterdam, or perhaps it was in a lobby conversation after watching Schindlers List…maybe we were the ones saying those words.
The subtext is, of course, that we would not be so blind and uncaring as those people.
We would be better. More humane. More compassionate. Less complicit.
I think that at some level I must have really believed this, that we would behave better…that we had evolved. That we, if faced with the same kind of situations, would know better, would have learned from the past and become more magnanimous.
I guess that’s why I’m still angry and shocked at my naiveté.
I thought that in Canada, in a nation built on immigration, we’d all hunger to do the right thing. That we’d all share our stories of beleaguered ancestors and how they came to this place of peace and inclusivity and so, of course (!) we’d want to extend the same hospitality.
Instead, I read of people’s racism thinly-disguised beneath a sudden and overwhelming concern for the homeless, the poor, the veterans. Oh my, such noble at-home causes that, prior to the Syrians, were never really at the top of anyone’s to-do list. As if these causes immediately nullify one another.
Witness too, all those Republican governors who righteously scream that ‘every life is precious’…unless those lives aren’t white, Christian and grown from their own dirt.
Of the 294 mass killings in the U.S. (so far this year), almost all were perpetrated by homegrown men, many of them ‘Christian’. But no one wants to talk about that.
Don’t you think it’s odd that we hear no demands to bomb the cities they sprang from, no call upon all their fellow Christians that they should be responsible at routing those extremists out of their communities, their churches, their homes?
Instead, we are all supposed to be quaking at the thought of these hidden refugee/terrorists who are standing by to infiltrate our country. What a great idea! Those terrorists can risk their lives coming over in leaky boats, spending at least two years languishing in a refugee camp where they will be security-screened beyond anything anyone of us has ever experienced, all so they can finally sidle into our country, where they will live on handouts and be heaped with scorn for stealing our jobs and homes. Brilliant!
Wouldn’t it just be easier to board a plane with their EU passports?
Still, let’s talk about those Muslims. The internet is awash in verses pulled from the Koran, proof positive that they all want to kill us infidels. Look. I understand. There are too many crazy extremists and they are a danger to the world and they have verses to back up their evil causes. I get that.
But the Muslim religion is not the only religion that has had their holy book hijacked for horror.
Do you know how many Southern white preachers spouted mouthfuls of Bible verses to support their appalling slavery and the KKK? Bible verses that promised that whites were right. Whites were best. Whites should rule. Black people paid with their lives for those sick beliefs. They are still paying for that bullshit, as was witnessed by those beautiful people in Charleston who were shot down at their prayer group by a white man who had grown up on a diet of Southern lies and ugliness.
Or shall we talk about apartheid and how it was held in place by such nice blonde-haired Christians?
You remember that ol’ crowd pleasin’ Bible story where Abraham ties his son to an altar and is about to plunge a knife through his heart? At the last minute, God stayed his hand, and well, that’s all pretty peachy. But who in the hell does that to their child? What kind of God asks for that type of sacrifice?
I’ll tell you who…an angry and vengeful God.
Quite frankly, I don’t think those verses sound so good, like maybe someone could use that as permission to kill their kids. Or what about the oft-quoted ‘eye-for-an-eye’ nugget. The Bible is full of nefarious moments, drunk fathers sleeping with daughters and other gems like that…
Oh. I know. That’s out of context!
My point exactly.
Any verse, from any book, holy or otherwise, can be used and twisted to violent ends.
So please. Show me the God you worship and I will show you yourself. Show me a God of love and peace and I say, please believe, and bring it on.
Show me your angry killer God who is used to invoke wars and who bombs children and hospitals in His name, and I’ll show you a reflection of the ugliness that resides in your soul.
God didn’t make man in His own image. We made God from ours.
I know I sound angry. I am angry. I am angry at myself for assuming we’d be kind and good and human.
So don’t quote me your verses, whether they’re from your own good book or the ones you’ve pulled out of context from someone’s holy book that you’ve never read. We can play that game all day long and get nowhere fast.
Don’t tell me you’re a Christian. Or a Muslim. Or an atheist.
Just be a good person. The deals you make with your God are your business. But when they start denying my fellow human beings their basic human rights to a peaceful existence? Well now you’re treading on my toes.
So how about this? Be the best that you can aspire to within your religion or in your pantheistic dance with the trees or in your interstellar communion with the stars. Frankly, I don’t care what you do or what you believe…but if you want me to believe that your God is the real deal, than be a disciple of that big big love you keep telling me about and make sure it includes everyone.
That means you have to stand up for those who are disenfranchised, feed the hungry and act like a loving and kind human being. By your actions I will know you.
All the rest is talk and talk is shit.
Face your damned fears, see them for what they are, and then, pull up your panties and get over it.
Ask your God to fill your heart with love and then help someone, or at the very least, get out of the way of the people who are helping.
There is no ‘other’. We are all in this together. When we dehumanize our fellow beings, we lose our own humanity.
Look in the mirror.
Right now, some of us are acting like those people, those people that failed to save their fellow man. We have before us an opportunity to be bigger than that.
Doing anything else is a spectacular failure of imagination and empathy.
I love this phrase “Too many people say nothing and do nothing and that is exactly how ugliness and hatred grows.” You are so right! Unfortunately this is how the majority of people live their life. They practice the philosophy of the ostrich. “I haven’t seen it, nothing to do with me”. I am very unfortunate to live with people who adopt this sort of philosophy, which make me feel frustrated and sometimes very angry.
I feel that with you I’ve found a soul-sister; somebody I can connect with. I am so glad I’ve found you.
Catherine. I agree. It’s so wonderful that we connected. I believe that finding other like-minded souls is such a wonderful gift and I think too, that Margaret Mead said it best, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
Beautifully said / ranted, Colleen. Each time we speak up (or write) is another voice added to the loud sounds of racism, Islamaphobia, intolerance, on and on the list goes. If people want to speak up using hate, we will continue to speak up with LOVE. Because we have to. Because we are privileged enough to have a voice. Thank you for your writing, as always. You inspire me.
Bless you Lori. What you wrote sums it up for me; “Because we are privileged enough to have a voice.”
I strongly agree, and therefore it is incumbent upon us to speak out.
I used to think it was better to just leave it alone. Maybe, I thought, it will go away.
But the older I get, the more I realize I have an obligation to speak out against the increasingly loud hate-filled view of the world. Because it’s not going away, not while the Trumps of the world continue to spew their intolerance feeding all the small-minded people’s ugliest fears.
I am honoured to be in your good company.
Thanks for inspiring me too.
With Christmas right around the corner we have no room in the Inn? Harper/Kenney and their ilk by bringing wedge politics to Canada, have used refugees and Muslims as the boogyman. Instead of a chicken in every pot they have us looking for terrorists under every bed. At least the re- posting on my facebook of meme and blogs from hate groups has made it easy to remove former friends and relatives who hate!
You’re right Ed. Between the wedge politics used in Canada and the Trumps of the world spouting their hate, people feel like they have permission to quit thinking and to instead spread hatred and racism. Why, oh why, can we not seem to learn from our past mistakes and history?
Colleen, how much I agree with you ! History repeats itself. White supremacy has always been and probably always will be.
Personally I come from a family where “others” have always counted. My parents were involved in medicine and the United Nations, so the pains of others have always been at the forefront of my education, something I have carried on in my life. Action speaks louder than words.
Catherine. It sounds like you grew up in a world where compassion and empathy mattered. And yes, walking the talk is the biggest accomplishment of all. Too many people say nothing and do nothing and that is exactly how ugliness and hatred grows.
Wow…and wow! What a powerful message….and so full of truths that it touches me more than most other comments I’ve read, where comments and opinions are put to paper or the Internet. Your passion, and compassion give me the courage to speak up on behalf of those who have little or no voice, power or hope. Thank you, Colleen, you are simply, amazing!!!
Thank you Sophie. I don’t feel very amazing but I certainly feel passionate about this. Yes, we have to advocate on behalf of all these people. There are so many refugees in the world. And we who have so much, who live in abundant countries and have rich lives are in a position to help.
I am continually confounded as to why people think love is a finite quality that is to be limited only to ‘their own’. Love is infinite. It has another amazing quality as well; love grows the more we share it.
I started to boil when your cousin had to have the last word with “please read the Koran,” so I went outside to cool off. Colleen, your blog says what I was thinking but in a much kinder way. You nailed it with all the right points. I especially like “Just be a good person.”
In Grade One I was bullied and terrorized by 3 boys. I especially remember running down a driveway near the school when they started pelting rocks at me, calling me a stupid Mennonite and a lousy Kraut. As if I had anything to do with WW2! As a result, I missed the school bus and walked home crying all the way. That was in 1950 and I remember it still. Teddy Gosling of Gosling’s Furniture in Abbotsford was one of those boys and he died of a heart attack a few years ago. I didn’t feel a bit sad when I heard.
These poor refugees have not caused the terror in their country or any country. They are victims. Most are Muslims. Give them a break. Imagine walking a mile in their shoes and see if your feet ache too.
Oh Martha. I have such a vivid picture of you as that crying little girl being bullied by those ignorant boys. The sad facts are that many of those bullying boys grow up and become even bigger bullies like Trump and Cruz. I really feel it is our job to speak out so that the dominant message is not one of fear and bullying, but of love and inclusiveness. You’re so right, it is all about empathy, about walking a mile in their painful feet and hoping, that somewhere, someone, some country will be kind.
Thank you for your venting eloquence. I agree on so many points!
And every once in a while I think about my parents, age about 2 and 4 when they escaped persecution in Russia, and my grandparents who left behind almost everything for a better life in Canada. Maybe, giving this some thought, I am the daughter and granddaughter of refugees. I think that’s great.
I am so glad my family came to Canada. It can be a beautiful country to escape to. I will do my best to welcome newcomers and keep an eye open for my own racism and fears.
Peace. 🙂
Blessings Elinor. My mother was six months old when her family fled from Russia. Her parents knew it was time to leave when all the young men of the village were being made to march around the square. My uncle told me that his job as a young school-age child, was to shovel lime on the dead bodies.
I thank my ancestors for having the fortitude and wisdom to come to Canada. How on earth could I ever not wish the same good fortune on people who are now fleeing their own horrible circumstances?
Amen!
Maureen, I was actually going to end this blog with ‘Amen’, I guess I knew you’d do it for me 🙂
Yes.
Thank you Mary and thank you, always, for your encouragement.
Well said. I agree entirely.
Thanks Dee Dee. I have just become so disillusioned with all the negative commentary. I needed to vent 🙂