Human Relations-Deconstructing the "Monster"

I would like this Blog to be a social experiment and it’s going to take all of us working together for it to be a success.

Human relations and interactions have turned from the “elephant in the room”, to a “Giant Monster” in America. Any time anything happens between two or more people of different races, religions, or ethnic backgrounds the passions are stirred up and the accusations of racism start flying. What I would like to see happen here is the deconstruction of the “Monster.” Let’s pick it apart and leave it useless and a non-issue.

It is my opinion that many of the views we have toward others are based on propaganda and stereotypes rather than interaction and reality. Something similar to what I’m saying happened to me as a young child. I was convinced my father was a monster. I based my view of him on what I was being told by someone else. One day, many years later, it dawned on me that my father really loved me and wasn’t the monster I was programmed to believe or imagine after all. I thought back on my life and realized he was always there when I needed him and he did a great job parenting. I almost missed out on recognizing and feeling that special love and bond between a father and a daughter. I was listening to and believing what I heard from someone else rather than believing what was actually occurring in the everyday interactions with my father.

I was able to finally see what was real and what wasn’t real because I put my passionate emotions aside. I think we can do the same thing here with relating to and interacting with our fellow humans. Once we differentiate true facts from opinions and socially accepted stereo types that have been created over the years, we will finally be able to work on the problems preventing everyone from living their best life. Imagine redirecting all the energy currently being used on anger, hatred, blame and division into creative and useful solutions for hunger, poverty and safety. How much better would life be if our energy was constructive and not destructive?

I think if we calmly discuss our questions and views of each other without taking offense, we might be able to move the dialogue and the relationship forward. We can feel free here to ask the difficult questions and give the honest answers without being attacked as a racist. This would go a long way in unloading the baggage we are all carrying forward and disarming the “Monster” currently stifling our relationship. We all need to remember to be respectful to each other as we evaluate our relationship with each other and embrace our commonalities and our differences alike.

Educating ourselves about each other will lead to a better understanding and relationship overall. This brings to mind a girl named Penny that I knew back in kindergarten. We noticed that our skin color and hair were different so, we allowed each other to feel our hair and our skin. We talked about that for a minute. Then we talked about everything we had in common; our love of finger painting, playing outside for recess etc. We found we had way more in common than those few little differences.

I think that is how we should be dealing with our relationship with each other. Focus on what we have in common. Answer honestly and without judgment the questions we have about each other. Really get to know one another without throwing accusations and blame at one another for situations that occur and realize, contrary to today’s popular outlook, every time something bad happens between people of different races, religions or ethnic backgrounds, it’s not always racism, persecution or prejudice. Sometimes, these things would have happened even if the people were the same race, religion or ethnic background.

So, here is where you all come in. Leave your passions at the door. This is a place where you can have your curiosities and questions answered by someone brave enough to answer for their race, religion, or ethnic background. And, remember, we are respecting people here. No accusations, just questions and a calm peaceful discussion. If you feel yourself getting worked up over a question, please step away for a moment and try to understand why it is provoking such a reaction for you. This process is meant for us to try something a little different than the usual cycle of blame we are currently stuck in.

Thank you in advance to everyone willing to participate in these talks. Remember poverty, hunger, and safety are issues that touch all our lives. Hopefully, getting passed the prejudice and distrust and focusing all our energy into solving these issues together will lead us to a place where we can all live our best life.