I believe we are more united as a people than we ever have been. In the last several months I have seen more people across the globe stand up for:
LGBTQ rights
Veteran’s rights
Women’s rights
POC’s rights
Safety of terrorist victims
and protection of the environment.
We even recently saw the creator of the Mother of all Rallies invite Black Lives Matter on stage to share their point of view … and found some common ground!
The beautiful thing about it is that for the first time that I can remember (or perhaps that I’ve paid attention) the community that is coming together and rallying for positive change is the the most diverse community I’ve ever seen. It’s as if all of a sudden we started believing one another about the trials, the injustice, the imbalance and the damage we’ve all faced. Video proof, compassionate leadership and painstaking dialogue has worked to humanize us to one another and we are finally realizing that we need each other’s help sometimes and that we really are in this together.
For decades groups like the the NAACP, ACLU, Southern Poverty Law Center, Planned Parenthood, Greenpeace and countless others sought change through the traditional system and now people, regular people and people with great influence, have finally learned how to have a voice that gets heard without violence and without degradation or subjugation of others and they’re using it. Peaceful demonstrations in the streets, letter writing campaigns to their representatives, community outreach and even something as simple (yet profound) as taking a knee. I cannot think of a time when we have worked so tirelessly for the rights and protection of ourselves as a collective.
I know there are plenty of people who aren’t as peaceful as the majority (Nazis and Antifa) and as misguided as they are they are still not able to sway the tide that is changing and bringing us together.
I’m also acutely aware that there is a good number of people who feel like rights, justice and balance are a zero-sum game, that if we lift up Group B that Group A pays the price somehow. They’re scared that their color, their religion and their lifestyle is in jeopardy. They’ve invested so much of their life believing one thing to be true and feel invalidated as this tide changes away from defined doctrine toward the more nebulous spiritualism and connectedness that feels scary without delineations and dogma that make them feel secure. We need more practice at including these people and making them feel safe to have a voice and I believe we will get there. This is a “progress, not perfection” scenario in my eyes and the progress I see is what I choose to celebrate.
Overall, I feel like as painful as this stage of our evolution is we ARE actually doing the hard work, we’re unpacking our life lessons and I’m thrilled to see so many people from so many walks of life working together on this painful part of our journey.
The players in our Oligarchy have a lot to gain from having us believe we’re “more divided than ever.” So they keep telling us exactly that … they know that what we turn our attention to grows like wildfire so they’re screaming it from the rooftops in the hopes that we’ll repeat it at our dinner tables and look only for the proof that it’s true. I contend that we have a lot of evidence of inclusion and unity … more so than ever. What’s possible for all of us when we turn our attention to where we are united? The evidence that more and more of the world is in agreement, cahoots and collaboration is EVERYWHERE. If we can’t find that unity in our immediate sphere, then let’s be the first to try it. Have a conversation with someone who holds an opposing viewpoint, not to change THEIR mind but to look where you might have room to stretch yours. And if you can’t stretch your mind to encompass their worldview, perhaps you can stretch a bit of your heart to include them as people who are doing what they believe is best.
The truth is, WE NEED EACH OTHER. Without opposing ideas and viewpoints we’d have blindspots and gaps that would hinder humanity’s growth in ways we can’t even imagine. The moment we turn our attention to what is working…
~ inclusivity
~ assuming positive intent
~ unity
~ discussion (yes, even the hard ones)
~ compassion
~ faith, trust, surrender
… is the moment we will create the rising tide that genuinely lifts all ships.
Be good to each other and Love ALWAYS.
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