In this (new) world of social media, hyper-sensitivity, media bias and sensationalism, demand for tolerance (intolerance), race-baiting, labeling/name-calling, radical religious views and so on; we wonder why there is so much hate and divisiveness among the human race.
Have you ever noticed just how hypocritical the dialogue and images are that we’re being exposed to on a daily basis? Unless you are able to completely disconnect from technology (and society, in general) this hypocrisy is unavoidable. What we consistently allow in, typically, is what eventually comes out in some similar form. Seems our human nature enjoys feeding on negativity and discord and the media knows this – so they continue to serve us the “tasty news meals” that we so love to hate.
“White police officer shoots and kills unarmed black man.” This is a typical news headline we hear and read nowadays. Can you see how slanted this type of reporting is and how it tends to project racism and wrong-doing without ever going into any of the all-important facts as to the true whats, whys and hows? Instead, before knowing any of the details, we have, unwittingly, allowed ourselves to be manipulated into feeling a certain way and we develop an instant opinion based upon the sly configuration of a few words fed to us by the news media. This is irresponsible reporting. In a society that wants to rid itself of racism, this is not the way to do it. This only furthers the hate and the racism that already exists. This is race-baiting and it needs to stop.
Wouldn’t a more reasonable news headline be something along the lines of, “Police officer shoots and kills suspect. More about the incident as details become clear.”? A headline such as this removes pretty much any and all bias. This would be responsible reporting as it states the same as the former headline without injecting any manipulative race-baiting insinuations. Why do we normally (not always) only hear about such incidences when it’s about a white police officer and a black suspect? There are many incidences of many different police and suspect race scenarios, but for some reason, they’re not reported anywhere near as aggressively. There are many statistics out there that illustrate the various numbers of different races shot by police officers and vice versa, so please feel free to look them up if you desire; I’m not going to go into such detail here. I’m really just asking why we’re all allowing ourselves to be so easily manipulated by an entity that seems to be more interested in their ratings (money) than anything else.
A subtopic to this same subject of news media race-baiting lies, solely, with each of us. Sure, the media is great at manipulating our thoughts and emotions, which we need to be more careful of allowing, but we also have a responsibility as a people and society to do what’s right on our own. If we really want to make strides to end racism, we first need to act as if that is what we really want. The command to do unto others as you would have them do unto you holds great power; regardless as to your religious or non-religious persuasion. Stop labeling others. Stop name-calling simply because you don’t agree with someone’s point of view. That’s almost the definition of being childish. It doesn’t further any progress, it only renders the name-caller’s arguments to be invalid; whether they actually are or not. If you ever find yourself about to name-call or label another (especially words ending with “ist” and “phobic”) during a spirited debate, just don’t. Agreeing to disagree is far better than reducing yourself to the apparent intellect of a second grader.
In the battle to overcome racism, we have to stop using racial slurs no matter the race…period. It is NOT okay for anyone to use them simply because of their race. If you don’t want to hear another race use a certain term, then you can NOT use it yourself. If you do use a certain racial term in any way, shape or form, you have absolutely NO right to be offended by someone of another race using it. “Do as I say, not as I do” holds no water and is majorly duplicitous. So, if, for example, we want to rid ourselves of the “N-word” then that means no one should have a free pass to use it simply because of the color of their skin. Otherwise, contempt and resentment will only continue to ensue. It’s not just the media furthering the racial divide; we are a major contributing factor to it as well.
So, guard your thoughts and emotions when watching or reading the news (or scrolling Facebook, Twitter or any other social media outlet) and pay close attention to how the news media’s choice and structure of words make you feel. Also, guard the words that come out of your own mouth. Don’t reduce yourself to becoming a name-caller or a labeler of others simply because you disagree with them. And, finally, don’t use words that, if used by another, would offend you. It’s lunacy to perceive someone else as a bigot when you yourself are living as and acting like a true hypocrite.
At least, that’s my opinion.
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