For the most part, I’ve been deliberately keeping my voice concealed online in regard to political and social justice matters. I find the social media platform overwhelming, somewhat harsh, and unforgiving. Yes, our opinions and views do matter, since they inform our actions, and our actions can do harm (sometimes unintendedly) or do good. I also recognize the tremendous power social media platforms have to amplify ones’ voice and potentially inspire many to think differently, to make a change, to grow and transform.
Yet, a deeper reason I shy away from bold statements online or pouring my heart out in public – is that my views, opinions, and feelings are not fixed, and I don’t always know. Please consider that at any given moment, there are factors we are all simply unaware of and that a huge aspect of why we form certain views and take certain actions has little to do with our “self”, and has much to do with our “programming” – childhood trauma, social conditioning, ancestral values, and so on.
And probably my biggest deterrent for copious social media involvement is that I don’t feel at ease with A. everything I feel and think today is embedded forever on my “wall” and, B. My “likes” and random statements from the mundane to the profound, are all meticulously harvested and manipulated by tech giants toward their gain. What a perfect setup for massive control! I’m unafraid to express my perspectives freely in real-time intimate conversation (with anyone who cares to listen!), I guess that feels the safest container for my expression.
Yet, I feel compelled to say: I do know 100% in every cell of my being that #blacklivesmmatter and I also know that if we can transform, or even attempt to transform the deep-rooted racism undertone of our society, it will be huge – it will not only benefit black people, it will benefit all. So, let us stay in the conversation, and if we don’t have anything of value to say, we need to listen. #blm is not the only issue, but it’s the issue that deserves our sincere and candid engagement, now. And let’s not stop there, let’s keep going with listening and cultivating understanding, so we can arrive at a place where we fully embrace and respect all; LGBTQ, indigenous people, women, elder, and everyone who identify as they do.
And of course, there is the “other” hot issue of the day – masks wearing shaming versus masks not wearing shaming. Really? Can we tolerate the spectrum of opinions, views, and actions, and try to understand one another instead of rush into judgment? I, (and I suspect you too), gravitate toward attaching to my perspective to the point my identity is all wrapped in it; it feels like an indication of WHO I AM, my right to exist – is it? Or is it not? And could we possibly take a breath, expand our chest and our view, and entertain that perhaps, just maybe, there is the slightest chance we are not always right? Have you ever changed your opinion on anything? And if you did, doesn’t that mean you could potentially change it again? I mean really, none of us actually know what the ULTIMATE TRUTH is because there is no such thing. Our perspective is dynamic, our relations, our evolution is a work in progress. Let us stay open to one another while connecting with our inner truth, with what feels wholesome and virtuous, and respectful. Let us stay in compassion, in care for one another, in acceptance of our brothers and sisters of all colors and backgrounds and political views.
Can we?