It’s much harder to hate people up close. I heard this phrase a decade ago from a work friend and it has stuck with me.
During the pandemic we were taught that distance from our fellow humans created safety from COVID germs. But what if this distance, keeping us safe from the germs, also created more space for hate?
In the digital, social media age, we now have an easier time hating people from behind a screen. We can silently judge from our comfy recliners. We are physically protected, in the safety of our homes, from a comeback to the biting words we post on someone else’s page.
Cruel words that someone posts on our social media pages can cause deep emotional pain. In some cases, that pain may hurt worse than a punch to the gut afterschool in the parking lot.
Throughout my advocacy work for those that have suffered severe reactions to the COVID vaccine, like me, I have been on the receiving end of so much beautiful love, but also a lot of armchair hate.
I have received hate from both sides of the political fence. Comments like, “You are so dumb for taking the shot that you deserve to die”, from those who don’t believe in the vaccine. Or comments like, “you are killing the vulnerable by scaring people with your story. I hope you die”, from those who do believe the vaccine is the answer.
I haven’t had either side say these things directly to my face. Why? Because, as my friend wisely said a decade ago, it is hard to hate people up close.
So many times in history we have seen hate melt away when people get a chance to get to know each other on a personal level and find that common thread of oneness that makes us all human. That shift from hate to humanity, leads to powerful change.
We can all be part of that powerful change. It isn’t that hard. We can do some simple things like:
Refrain from posting hateful comments online.
Listen past the headline.
Ask more questions about why the person feels so passionately about an issue you feel differently about.
Recognize the fear behind someone’s opinion.
Connect with people in real life.
You just may discover you have more in common than you think. I love this 3 minute video from Denmark that very beautifully illustrates this very thing.
I also love Team Humanity because that is exactly what we are building and growing. We are a community of people from many different backgrounds coming together to support all those who have suffered at the hands of COVID, especially from the vaccine.
We have all suffered some loss and achieved some new found wisdom during the pandemic. For me, it’s the wisdom that we are more alike than different and that we need to stick together to support one another because no politician, no celebrity, no corporation is coming to save us.
We must look past our differences. We must come together close enough that the hate starts to melt away and we are left on common ground in love and humanity.
Hate steals our humanity. Sometimes, we have to let go, and go. Tomorrow always brings more strife, just in case we miss it - lol. Some people feed off hate. I like to starve them, but most times I choose to ignore them. They use it gain imagined power over people. The odds are they were treated badly as children. Can't turn them off either. Anyway, this article was perceptive and fun.