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technicallyzanyfestival-blog · 5 years

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Info sheet Racism and Discrimination

Who?: Racism and discrimination are endured by a vast variety of people. Racism in itself is heavily felt by dark skinned people all around the world. Due to subconscious teachings of black being inferior to white; light is good, dark is evil, etc., with an increase in darkness comes a higher prejudice against said person. When we mend discrimination with racism, we can see a crystal clear relationship. From passed up job opportunities to being denied service, black people secomb to most racial discrimination by far. This is not to leave out all minority race groups, especially indigenous people. They are sometimes viewed as drug addicts with no work ethic, this leading into not being thought of in opportunities that could better their quality of life.

Women are subjected to discrimination far too much in our day and age. Many of us do it subconsciously, whether it be feeling more comfortable with a male server, electrician, construction worker, etc. Women are seen to be less capable of certain tasks than men.

Some other people who experience discrimination are those of the LGBT+ community. Certain job titles still are not viewed as an appropriate place to express one’s homosexuality. In many occasions gay couples will be denied service from businesses due to strictly the fact that the consumers are gay.

Where?: Racism occurs all over the world, because of the social normality, for things such as skin colour, ethnicity, and religion. We are mainly discussing racism within America and Canada. America and Canada’s racist status quo remains unique and alarmingly oppressive. This racism is entirely based on skin-colour and one ideal image. One’s nationality is immaterial. In terms of discrimination, discrimination also happens all over the world and on a greater scale. Discriminatory traditions, policies, ideas, practices and laws exist in many countries, some having discrimination towards different groups more than other countries would. In some places, controversial attempts such as quotas have been used to benefit those who are believed to be current or past victims of discrimination

When?: Nobody knows when racism was birthed. In many cultures, dark skin is viewed to coordinate with poorness with the ideology that if you worked outside, you were poor and tanned. A spotlight shown on the cruelty of racism during the slave trade in the 17th century. Black people were used as slaves due to solely their skin colour. This ignited the flame of white power. Once slavery was claimed illegal in the late 1800’s that mindset didn’t die. Segregation showed the epitome of discrimination. Jobs were not given, seats were not sat in, schools were not attended to, etc., simply because of a colour.

With many protests for equality throughout the 18th and 19th century including our modern “Black Lives Matter” movement, segregation was banned and minds were slowly but surely opening. However the view of black people of less than was not fully stripped. Plantations turned to prisons and beatings turned into “necessary action”. Police brutality formed such a movement. Today we can still witness discrimination against minority groups even though many rules and regulations have been put in place, there is still the fight for equal views and opportunities.

What?: Racism: the belief of some races being better than others and the actions resulting from that belief. Racism is not just saying offensive comments to one of a different cultural background but offensive to their community as a whole. Canada supposedly to be a very multicultural country is exposed to more occurences of racism than expected.

Discrimination: prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially around race, age or sex. Some might think racism and discrimination are the same thing, but in reality they are not. Discrimination targets an individual’s gender, sexual orientation age as well as race. Majority of people are exposed to discrimination such as groups of teenagers, women, LGBTQ and those of colour.

Why?: Racism and discrimination are seen as very common topics around the world, making them immune to some, but there is a reason why it happens. Racism has been brought from generation to generation, especially during the time when the europeans were colonizing different countries of different ethnic backgrounds. Not only is it a form of hate from old times but a stereotype of a certain race. Older generations bring their dislike and bias towards a certain or multiple races, and younger generations adapt to it. Stereotypes are similar in a way except the racism is not coming from a person you know but a large group of people who have thoughts about the certain race. For example saying asians can’t drive, but just because a person has been in a bad situation with one, doesn’t mean they are all bad drivers. Discrimination is similar in the sense of stereotyping a large group or having an opinion about them because everyone thinks its right. For example, some people think women should not work and just stay at home to take care of the children. Because of people being so influenced by what others of society think, racism and discrimination seems common in a way. Although there is no way to stop racism and discrimination since it will always be around especially with older generations, there is a way to educate the younger generations about the misuse of it. There is a large misuse of the word ‘racist’ and ‘discriminate’’ because some people do not know what the real definition of racism and discrimination is. Educating, and not labelling everything as racism and discrimination could be ways to have the terms not be so common.

Vision/Goal: The first step to demolishing racism and discrimination as a whole is to educate ourselves about this issue and to know the kind of effect that it can have on our society. Generations need to be raised and taught how to treat people equally and correctly or else we will never be able to grow and change this world-wide issue. Another reason is that we need to stop viewing each other as greater or superior to one another. The hope is that by doing things such as these, all people can live without fear, and instead with hope and love, however this can only be achieved as a society and not individuals. It will take a great amount of effort to demolish or at best decrease racism and discrimination from our society,

Background/issue: - what has caused the inequity? What have you identified as the inequity? Social inequality is linked to racial inequality, gender inequality, and wealth inequality. The way people behave socially, through racist or sexist practices and other forms of discrimination, tends to trickle down and affect the opportunities and wealth individuals can generate for themselves. Today in Canada we have legal protection for victims of discrimination and a constitutional guarantee of equality rights for all. Employees cannot be treated differently because of age – unless they are under 19, in which case different standards apply. Remember, the BC Human Rights Code does not permit employers to discriminate against employees based on personal characteristics – like age, race, religion or gender and other personal characteristics.

So, for example: Employers cannot refuse to hire you because of where you come from. Employers cannot fire you because you are pregnant. Employers cannot force you to retire because of your age. Employers cannot harass you sexually.

Human rights

Poverty

Poverty is the deprivation of common necessities such as food, clothing, shelter, and safe drinking water, all of which determine our quality of life. It may also include the lack of access to opportunities such a s education and employment which aid the escape from poverty and/or allow one to enjoy the respect of fellow citizens

Although one of their group members was missing, i found this presentation to be very educational and wee executed. I am happy to know that the world’s population living in extreme poverty has gone down by twenty-four percent in the last twenty-eight years. It disgusts me to find out that one seventh of Canada is living in poverty. It simply doesn’t make sense to me. We are labeled as a first world country yet we have over fourteen percent of our population living in conditions equivalent to those of third world countries. There is no excuse for Canada to allow Canadians to be limited to resources; a major factor in why so many are trapped in the poverty cycle.

LGBTQ

LGBTQ = Lesbian, gay , bisexual, Transgendered, Twin spirited, Queer, and Questioning

The LGBTQ is an initialism referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender/transsexual people. In use since the 1990’s. the term lgbtq is an adoption of the initialism lab which itself started replacing the phase gay community which many within LGBT communities felt did not represent accurately all those to which it referred.

This presentation was executed very well. I personally am always extra attentive when Leon is presenting, as he always delivers his presentations with confidence and ensures to audience is not bored, which appreciated. Something that stuck with me from this presentation is that police officers used to raid gay bars simply to ensure that they knew nowhere was safe for them. To be living in constant fear only due to one’s sexuality is a state that I cannot fathom.

This topic is also what is wrote my human rights essay about:

LGBTQ+

By: Madison Neal

Love is light. A saying rolled off the tongues of those blanketed buy its warmth, those who love fearlessly and freely, utterly and entirely welcomed to express it. But there is another flame of love, it’s as well, warm and bright, all though it’s punishing to reach and is guarded; bordered buy police badges and twisted metaphors, laws prohibiting anyone to bask in its beauty and mobs set to attack those who seek to. This love is denied to the LGBTQ+ community. During the 60’s and 70’s, more and more people were expressing their love for the same sex in a wave that unsettled and angered many civilians. Gay people had no safe space to love one another. Police often raided gay bars to ensure those inside knew that being who they truly were would never be okay. Gay marriage was illegal in Canada until July 20, 2005, and the U.S. until June 26, 2015. Even then it was frowned upon by a plethora of close minded people. Gay couples have been and still are denied service from businesses and are mistreated in society.

The light of self love is also stripped from the category of transgender/two-spirited people. There has been reports of a transgender woman being shot down by a gunman in a car driving by, simply for appearing to be transgender. They have been and recently under Trump, still are denied to serve their country in the United States. These inequities endured by the community are only a sliver of the inhumane deeds excerpted on those in it. people are placed in conversion camps and cleansing therapy to this day, attempting to “fix” people whom are in no way broken, but rather different.

A conception of wrongness associated with this topic is not a natural trait, it is taught by those who were also brainwashed at a young age to give love a shape that only fits between a man and a woman. Lack of exposure is the route to closed minds across the globe. As with anything, when something is never brought to light we cannot perceive it as normal, and to add on top of the weight of “abnormality” to such affection, it has been is deemed inappropriate in the past to execute in public, and has been despised when done in front of children. We can view this in separate generations. As protests and fights for equality by generations before the Millenials were held, much attention was brought to precisely how unjust the laws were surrounding the way of life of the LGBTQ+ community. Because of these protests and exposure Millennials grew up with a great decrease of censorship of the community and what kindness and care it obtained. This would birth people whom would use the likes of social media to debate and discuss with those still set in a different viewpoint. This paved the way for the next generation (Generation Z) to be flooded with exposure of the topic. Today we see television shows based around gay culture and multiple gay characters with many stories of all too real hurdles forced by a group of people to overcome, this includes shows for children; a notable step in progress given the utmost disgust portrayed around allowing children to be educated on any factor of the topic. This generation is growing up with LGBTQ+ role models whom they can confide in by merely clicking on a youtube video. The magic of the internet has been a crucial tool. With its gift just clicks away, my generation is forming in this world as one who is known to convey gay and transgender as anything but a choice. We can see transgender kids as young as five years of age embracing who they truly are. The origin of injustice was and will never be a feeling, it is and has always been lack of exposure accompanied by insulating purely negative notions to the people.

My vision for the future of the LGBTQ+ community is that we can mould and raise people in our society and eventually all over the globe to be educated on the topic. Ignorance is born from withholding of knowledge. With minds filled with exposure of “gay culture” and all the bright unique traits of the community, I yearn for no individual to ever have a shred of fear when it comes to being oneself. I as a Catholic am very accepting and interactive with many members of the community, as many Christians overall are. However, I am aware of the closed of extreme religionists of Christianity do not feel the same way, due to what the bible says. I wish to change their way of thinking and see those people be enlightened on the fact that the bible is filled with metaphors. There are heart-wrenching stories of people begging God not to make them gay, when in reality it is how God formed them and I believe that if god loves all of his children, than he will accept the very ones that he created.

The constant lingering of danger due to one’s sexuality is that of atrocious. I envision a society where those of the community would feel safe regardless of any location, and that little boys and girls are not told to “man up” or “act like a lady”. Children’s brains are not at a stage of development equipped to completely know what they identify as. It is these social stereotypes that are another burden for those who come to the acceptation later in life that whom they were presenting to the world is but what they were told to be. I want to improve the quality of life for people who are only expressing what they feel in bars or at home, for them to be not just legally but socially free to show affection in public without crude stares or judgements. To witness schools implicate sexual education on both heterosexual and homosexual relationships, the children of the world are the future of it, and if we want to change the future it must be made a priority to train them to be accepting and understanding the complexity of all forms of love, as it is all in the end the same.

Racism and Discrimination

Racism is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce and inherent superiority of a particular race. People with racist beliefs might hate certain groups of people according to their racial groups

In the case of institutional racism, certain racial groups may be denied rights or benefits, or get preferential treatment.

Discrimination is any action or behaviour that causes a person to be treated in an unfair, hurtful and negative way. People may discriminate because they have a prejudice against someone or because they have a stereotype of that person.

People may discriminate without any intention to hurt someone but someone may still be hurt and disadvantaged by another person’s actions and behaviour. (racism is a belief, a set of values, an attitude — a group of assumptions that view and construct in a negative way a group of people used on their racial background.

My group presented on the topic of racism and discrimination, I feel our presentation went smoothly and i feel that the audience responded well to our multiple interviews of people’s encounters with racism and discrimination. Something i found interesting while doing research on this topic is that in many countries in Asia, lighter skin represents wealth, because if you work outside it means you have an underpaying job. SO if one is tan, it is a tell that they work outside and are therefor poor

Child Soldiers and Military Recruitment

War is reciprocal and violent application of force between hostile political entities aimed are bringing about a desired political end-state via armed conflict.

The military use of children takes three distinct forms: children can take direct part in hostilities (child soldiers), or they can be used in support roles such as porters, spies, messengers, look puts, and sexual slaves; or they can be used for political advantage either as human shields or in propaganda.

I admired this presentation for its projection and detail in knowledge. I also enjoyed the kahoot at the end. I found this to be a good strategy; letting us know there would be a kahoot at the end, and that the winner would earn a prize, because it kept the class engaged the entire time. Something that left me with a pit in my stomach is when the presenters explained how in some countries, military goes into villages and/or towns and forcefully strip able-bodied boys and sometimes girls away from everything they know to battle. I couldn’t imagine waking up one morning thinking my day is going to pan out as usual, only to be taken away from my family and friends and thrown into extreme danger. It is inhumane and revolting.

Violence in Relationships

Violence - is any act that results in or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, and psychological harm or suffering, including threats of such acts and coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether in public or private life.

This presentation was well done and knowledge on the subject I had not known before was brought to light. One thing that truly stood out to me wa the topic of the relations of the LGBTQ community and violence in relationships. Before this presentation i always thought of violence in relationships to me more often a male abuser towards a female, and sometimes a female abuser towards a male. It had never occured to me that the community are more likely to be subjected to an abusive situation in a relationship. I learned that this was due limited resources and lack of education upon these groups. The LGBTQ community is often excluded from the definition of relationship abuse because of their identity and lack of exposure.

Genocide

Genocide is the elimination of an entire group of people classified by race, religion, etc.

This groups presentation was also well executed. I found it interesting and surprising to hear of the multiple genocides that have taken place over the years, as far as my knowledge had reached before the presentation, there had only been two, i now know there were virtually triple that which were addressed in the presentation.

Extra notes:

Gender

Gender comprises a range of differences between men and women, extending from the biological to the social.

Biologically, the male gender is defined by reference to the presence of a Y-chromosome, and its absence in the female gender. However, there is debate as tot he extent that the biological difference has or necessitates differences in gender roles in society and on gender identity, which has been defined as “an individual’s self-conception as being male or female, as distinguished from actual biological sex.”

Homelessness

Homelessness is the condition and social category of people who lack housing, because they cannot afford, or are otherwise unable to maintain, regular, safe, and adequate shelter

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halfchai · 7 years

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Tolerating Intolerance

A few years back, I interned at a design studio in Bombay. It was a long commute and my grandfather (who is a bit of a wizard when it comes to transport systems in Bombay and its geography in general) told me exactly which buses I might take and where I would change them. It was almost strange how excited I was. Mostly because this was most unlike the Bangalore buses–always on time, you had to enter from the back and disembark from the front and no one ever had to fight for a 'ladies’ seat’. I carried my iPod, but never really used it because the early morning bustle of this place was fascinating.

As the days passed, what was new and exciting started becoming familiar and I looked forward to routine. Everyday I met my dogs near the bus stand. They needed no feeding, but I fed them anyway. Everyday I saw this attractive woman get into the bus, immaculately dressed. As soon as she was at her stop she did this little jig where she smoothly got out of her flats and into her heels and before the bus left the stop, she was already on her way to her office (presumably). What I loved most, was seeing the vastis. At the same time and place everyday I saw the same things–the brushing man, the clothes drying lady, the shouting lady (she was always just angry), the always doing her hair lady and blended beautifully into this scenario were the dogs and cats generously peppered amidst their humans. I started to notice that all the animals near every little tea stall and pan wala and in the vastis, all seemed to be surprisingly healthy (the rats are always especially heathy in Bombay :/). I wondered, in an admiring sort of way, how people who had so little parted with what they had to feed another or nourish something other than themselves. I don’t think I thought about it deeply, but it was heartwarming.

One day towards the end of my time there, I didn’t find my bus stop dogs. As my commute continued, I noticed that many of the familiar huts/temporary shelters and the familiar activities and faces within them were gone. The dogs/animals were gone too. I saw this at quite a few places and it was a dry sort of commute. When I got off to change my bus, we were told to stay glued to our spots because a prominent politician had to make their way to the airport. Everyone was visibly upset and there was a sort of uproar. I realised that some one had decided to ‘clean' the place up because a certain ‘VIP’ was to come.

So this is our idea of ‘cleaning’ up? To shove the beings we perceive as not adhering to our image right under the rug?

Over the next few days I saw some people return and some dogs returned too. A lot of them didn’t. I think when you encounter ghastly-ness that you haven’t before, your response is perhaps naive–‘how could they?!’. At this point people who’ve seen it a lot more will tell you that this is just ‘how it is’. With time your outrage and sadness will give way to apathy and you will perhaps turn to someone naive and younger and tell them that ‘this, is just how it is’.

Except the only thing that this does, I have come to realise today, is that instead of actually cultivating tolerance or any kind of comprehension, it seems to create a tolerance for intolerance. A complete disdain and intolerance for anything that does not conform to our idea of ‘normal’ (god only knows what that is) or anything that may go against an image we’ve so painstakingly created in our head of what our reality should constitute.

I should perhaps provide context here. Yesterday some dogs that dwelled in our society, some of which we loved and fed, were simple picked up in the early hours of the morning. A confrontation with the society ensued and the hostility was through the roof. We were part heartbroken and part angered. At one point we were told that dogs didn’t ‘look good’ in a society like this one. It took me back to my memory in Bombay. How absolutely willing we are to want to do away with everything that doesn’t suit us or ‘fit'. It is only when you face hostility or are made to feel like an alien or a minority do you come to realise what scores of people in this country go through everyday. Possibly still fighting for everything that is already their right.

So many times when people hear some of us asking to leave grains/food/water out for animals, we’re met with, “when humans don’t have water how can you think of animals?” But really why shouldn’t I? I’m not endorsing one over the other and neither am I suggesting an unequal distribution of resources. It has however, made me wonder why we feel such a sense of entitlement. Over every little thing. I wish that anything that had the ability to feel hunger or pain, never had to feel it.

While looking up laws that prevent cruelty to animals, especially street animals (the recent ones are shockingly well drafted) I came across a little bit in our constitution about our country being one of ahimsa and of compassion to all living beings. I’m still unsure why, but it touched me deeply. Maybe there's comfort in the written word or someone way wiser than you endorsing what you’ve thought.

All of this just is just a ghastly reminder of where we are and who we are.

We’re a humourless society waiting in the wings to be offended by something. Anything. Don’t laugh, it’s offensive to… someone. We’re insecure beyond belief so we must have people wear their flag on their sleeve, except wait, you actually can’t. We have divided the country up into Nationals and Anti-Nationals. No one knows what it means, except that if you disagree with me about how this country should be, you’re anti-national. We’re hoarse from crying about being discriminated against or marginalised and when we take a break from all the crying we’re happy to perpetuate the same on someone else. Only when ‘we’ do it, it can’t be discrimination. We discuss matters and have the most mind numbingly shallow ‘debates' in our incestuous little circles where everyone of course, agrees. A different point of view is of course, offensive (back to point one). At best, we cannot fathom the thought of being compassionate to someone or something that does not serve a purpose (in our scheme of things) and at worst, we’re a bottomless pit of how far we’re willing to stoop. The fact that we have to dub someone a ‘minority’ is bad enough, but everyday we vow to be our patronising selves and make sure we let them know that we’re ‘letting’ them live peacefully (this applies to gender, religion, politics and across specie). I could go on and on, but I’m sure the list of people being offended is fast multiplying (Don’t laugh, remember?).

I remember learning about fractals–'each part of which has the same statistical character as the whole.’ Our ugliness as a race is probably a metaphorical fractal. I have loved this country for its mess, of its ingenuity, for its warmth, for its impatience and even for its ability to deal with complete squalor, but today I have come to realise that the only thing we’re really doing is perfecting the art of being tolerant … of intolerance. Because that’s ‘just how it is’.

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traceecatherine-blog · 7 years

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Some Thoughts

I decided it’s about that time again for me to use my gift of writing to express what I’m sure a lot of people are thinking and feeling right now. You’re not to worry, this isn’t another post about who you voted for and why and what have you. This is, however, a post about politics and what has recently been happening in America and I urge you to read this entire thing despite the fact that you may be “sick of hearing about it” or “tired of seeing it”. Please don’t immediately denounce this post just because politics “aren’t your thing” or you just simply don’t care. Now is not the time to shut off the news and write off every post about some very real and very wrong things that are happening in our world. And you need to realize that your ability to ignore it and decide that it’s not your thing and to turn it off is entirely and irrefutably a PRIVILEGE. For some, particularly those that this post is about, there is no turning it off. There is no ignoring it. There is no choice of whether or not they want to know. For some, politics becomes life or death. Now is the time to listen and become educated and become involved, and I hope that this post can provide some sort of value to those effects.

The reality of living in this world, right here in 2017, is scary. The reality of living in the US is horrifying. We are part of a country that is being run by someone who does not advocate for equality, who does not believe that everyone is deserving of all the same rights and freedoms, who does not believe that every human being deserves to live a happy and free life. This country is being run by someone who openly and happily dehumanizes other people because of their race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, where they’re from, and the list goes on. This country is being run by someone who has put a BAN--”an official legal action to prohibit” by definition--on other human beings. A ban. On human. Beings. As if these human beings are dangerous chemicals that shouldn’t be put into food, all because they come from countries with Muslim populations. If you’re still reading this I want you to seriously consider what I just said and what the very real fact is: the president of the United States of America, the supposed land of the free and the land of opportunity and the promise land, has banned HUMAN BEINGS with Muslim religious backgrounds from 7 different countries from entering the United States. Human beings who are under attack and fleeing war torn areas and are dying every single day at the hands of the people America is also supposedly worried about. These human beings know the violence and destruction and loss that real terrorists cause better than any of us could ever fathom. They are FLEEING those terrorists. They ARE NOT terrorists themselves. Being Muslim does not make you guilty by association and it is inhumane and unjust to punish BILLIONS of human beings that practice a peaceful religion just because the actions of less than 0.01% of that group. Muslim refugees and immigrants not only need our help and compassion, they DESERVE it.

Please imagine if the situation were reversed, if you and your family were to be in their shoes. While we cannot pretend to know the real gravity of their struggle and their oppression, the least we can do is try to understand by putting ourselves in their spot. Imagine living in a country where every single day, your life is in danger of people who claim to be just like you. Every city is ruined by violence and death and you have to worry every single day about your children and your parents and your brothers and sisters and your significant others getting home alive. You have to hope and pray that everyone is sitting down to dinner each night. Imagine wanting to get out, needing to get out for the safety of you and all of your loved ones and imagine going through an extensive and drawn out process of background checks and interviews and applications in order TO get out. Imagine finally having the opportunity to secure the safety of everyone you love, only to be told you’re not allowed. Only to be turned away and sent back towards war and death and living every day like you might not see any of your family again because you were killed in another bombing or you were shot to death for one reason or another, all because the nation you were trying to seek refuge in has decided that people like you are dangerous. Imagine being labeled and grouped together with the people who have been trying to kill you. Imagine how it must feel to know that those in power of that nation do not care about you as a living breathing human being simply because you follow a certain religion.

There was a young man on Twitter who posted something along the lines of, “I remember being in history class and thinking, ‘if I had been there, I would have _____’.” Well, you are here. You’re here right now and it’s happening right in front of your eyes and you can choose to sit by and do nothing and let some high school Sophomore learn about it in their history books years from now and think about how they would’ve done it differently, or you can choose to do what the younger you thought should’ve been done in a similar situation. Regardless of what side of the election you were on, regardless of where you come from and what color your skin is and who you love, at the end of the day we are all human beings. And human beings should not EVER sit idly by and watch other human beings suffer and be discriminated against and be treated as “less than” for whatever reason, for ANY reason. No human being is illegal. No human being is wrong. No human being is less than a human being for any reason at all. And if you find that you can state a “reason” then you, sir or ma’am, need to admit to yourself that something is very wrong with you. You need to sit down and take responsibility for the way that you think and you need to realize that it is no one else’s fault--not even those you claim are dangerous or less than--but your own that you feel this way about other people. Every person on the planet has the right to choose how they treat other human beings; every single person no matter how you were raised or where you come from. There is no excuse, here in 2017, to not understand what is right and what is wrong. I know children as young as 4, 5, 6 years old who understand that it’s not okay to treat other human beings without respect and decency, and yet there are full grown adults who still maintain the rhetoric that people of color and the LGBTQ+ community and people of different religious backgrounds are wrong and that they need to be changed or just “exterminated” all together. Those people CHOOSE to think that way and they CHOOSE to treat others that way and do not let them convince you of anything different.

Bottom line is that America was built on immigration. America was built on the idea of freedom. NONE of us, aside from the Natives who were already here and the African Americans who were forcibly brought here, would be in this country today if our ancestors had not immigrated here from the rest of the world. The original 13 colonies would have never existed as they did if the British people had not immigrated here in the first place. More likely than not YOU, the very person reading this right now, are a descendant of immigrants whether you know it or not and whether you want that to be case or not. You are. You would not live the life you do today had it not been for your family’s immigration to the United States at some point in the past, no matter how long ago or how recent. You need to understand, right now, that these Muslim refugees and immigrants are looking for the same thing that your family was--freedom and a better life filled with opportunity. They are not fleeing their countries just because they feel like it. They are not seeking asylum in the United States because they want to harm its existing citizens. They are coming here because they see no other option, they have no other choice besides living in the wake of more danger than any of us will ever experience in our lives. The absolute last thing we should be doing is turning those people away and turning our back on humanity just because some guy in a suit tells you to believe that they’re dangerous for this country. The last thing we should be doing is ignoring the hurt and the suffering these men, women, and children are enduring in their home countries just because some guy in a suit tells you they’re not people who are deserving of being treated like a human being.

If you’re still with me and you find that you agree with anything that I’ve said, I encourage you not to remain silent about it. Speak up, and make sure it’s loud and clear. Vocalize the way you feel. Do your research and become an educated person and use that knowledge to teach others, use that knowledge to get involved. Get out on the streets and join the protests, stand with the crowds and let those in positions of power know that you are not complacent. Show them that we the people are united and strong and that we will not back down and we will not stand with them if they choose to treat other human beings as anything but exactly that--human beings. Use your voice because it matters so much more than you think it does, whether you’re 10 or 50. Donate to organizations that fight the good fight and seek justice and equal treatment of everyone (the ACLU is currently a huge one) and utilize companies that openly oppose the wrongful treatment of other human beings (Lyft has promised to donate $1 million over 4 years to the ACLU), and know which companies not to use and support. Call, email, fax, write to your representatives and congressmen and women and let them hear your discontent and your outrage and do not stop. The best thing we can do is be loud and be relentless and be unified and be strong, especially in the light of our differences. Diversity, in all walks of life, is what makes us beautiful and what makes us human and we need to stand up and show everyone that we will not tolerate anything less than acceptance of every single person on the planet. We need to show everyone that racism, xenophobia, sexism, religious intolerance, and a complete and utter disregard for another human’s life will not stand. America will not, and can not, be “great” (there is no “again”) if our idea of “great” is keeping people out of our country and more or less condemning them to die because there’s a 1/1.6 billion chance that that particular Muslim could be a terrorist. America will not, and can not, be “great” if we choose to construct physical borders and divide ourselves from the rest of the world and isolate ourselves just because we’ve been given the illusion that those people are the problem.

#no ban no wall #immigration #immigrants are welcome here #people are people #no matter what

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sunshine-gremlin · 4 years

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What do you think about the Christian Bible and verses like Romans 1:26-27? “That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.”

Well, I think the first thing we have to remember is that the Christian Bible is a document that has been translated and edited many times over. There were certain things put into the ‘official text’ and certain things left out of it. This is important to remember, at least in my opinion, because it keeps in mind that the publishers were human and flawed and thus created human and flawed things. Knowing that the publishers and their publications are flawed means that we should look at the Bible with a critical eye and acknowledge there are multiple ways of interpreting the text and the text itself may be, shall we say, not-very-Christian.

Second, the Bible can be seen as a historical document, a living document, or a mix of both. By historical document I mean, you don’t go around changing it for the modern world, you don’t edit it, or re-write it, or whatever. A living document would be something that should change as a society also changes. A historical document would be The Declaration of Independence (US). A living document would be the United States Constitution which is stiff in effect.

I think the Bible is a mix of these. There is the historical aspect of the Bible- perhaps laws from Leviticus would be a good example because they acted as rules for a specific society but are typically no longer applied to modern societies (tattoos, shellfish, piercings, etc.). There is the living document of the Bible which is meant to be in use and followed today, i.e. love your neighbor. There are parts of the Bible that are really both historical and living. For example, Noah’s Ark can be considered living because it is still actively being taught as part of the Christian faith. It is meant to impart the importance of faith in God and perseverance through struggle. It’s also worth evaluating it as a historical document because the flood it talks about is referenced by multiple other cultures from the same area and is likely to have happened. Thinking of Noah’s Ark as a historical document let’s us understand what people were valuing hundreds and thousands of years ago.

So far, I brought up that the Bible might not really be communicating what God wanted it to, because it was written and published by humans and second, that there is a difference between the living and historical aspects of the Bible.

For me, Romans 1:26-27 is really a mix of both of these things.

I cannot fathom a reason why an all knowing and all loving God would ban the acts those verses allude to. Some may say that I am not in a position to question God and I would reiterate my first point, that I am not questioning God, but rather the centuries of editing and translation that produced the modern Bible. I am not questioning God. I am questioning the men who claim to represent Him. The Bible is filled with characters that falsely claim to represent God, be they the Pharisees in the new Testament or Bildad, Eliphaz, and Zophar from the Book of Job, today’s world is no different.

Romans 1:26-27 is communicating a historical aspect rather than a living aspect. Romans 1:26-27 is a rule that was written down one time, but not necessarily one we need to follow.

Third- it must be said that there are rules in the Bible that are meant to express one’s covenant with God be it the clothes we wear or the days we observe. There are other rules in the Bible that are concerned with morality, i.e. Don’t kill, Don’t take the Lord’s name in vain.

Perhaps Romans 1:26-27 is in the former category, in which case, I would question why people are so set on controlling other people’s covenant’s with God. I would question why a loving God would demand an expression of faith that has resulted in self hatred and suicide and assault and murder and abuse.

I do not see how Romans 1:26-27 would fall into the second category. Certain things are inherently wrong. Murder is wrong because it violates another person’s free will, rape falls into the same category. Failing to give to the poor is wrong because letting your fellow human suffer is wrong. (I realize violating another person’s free will and letting another suffer, each in turn need their own justification for why the act is evil, but that is a conversation for another time.)

These verses from Romans describe consensual sex between individuals with the only ‘sinful’ part being the respective gender of each participant. But what harm does that bring? It does not violate free will. It does not allow another to suffer. It harms none.

Romans 1:26-27 may be in the Christian Bible but it fails to align with what I believe Christianity is about- which is about loving your neighbor as your self.

TLDR: (1)The Christian Bible was written by fallible people who produce fallible things. A loving and benevolent God would not require a law that results in self hatred, in assault, in murder, in abuse. (2) The Bible has been around for a while. There is a difference between something being the Bible because somebody thought that long ago and something is in the Bible cause it’s a really important lesson. (3) Some rules are about keeping covenant with God, others are about morality. Romans 1:26-27 is the former and a just God would never require it (see point 1).

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