Basic common decency has become heroism
I watched a sweet story on the news this morning, you know, one of those feel good moments that brightens your day just a little. The kind that people say "restores their faith in humanity". This nice young man helped an elderly woman who was walking home from the grocery store by giving her a ride and loaded all of her groceries in his car for her. Newscasters were calling him a hero. All of a sudden it hit me:
Simple kindnesses are seen as heroic acts in this society because it has become overwhelmingly cruel.
Now don't get me wrong, these kinds of stories have always existed and good samaritans really are everywhere. People do good things all the time! It is *really* nice to hear a feel-good story and I am grateful for them.
But I am noticing, more and more, that simple neighborly conduct is being labeled specifically as "Heroic". And I believe that is because we are living in a country that has normalized cruelty so much that any report of someone being a decent human being FEELS like heroism. Damn, that makes me sad.
I don't want to feel like mass shootings are normal. I don't want to hear hateful rhetoric spouted about my neighbors. I don't want to see obnoxiously proud white racists hiding behind a flag that they say is heritage. I didn't want to read that story about a grown ass man assaulting a child because that child didn't take off his hat for the national anthem. I don't want people who read about that story to say "I bet he'll take off his hat next time. His parents should have taught him more respect." I don't want the occupant of the White House to tell women of color who are American citizens and duly elected officials to go back to their shit hole countries. I don't want to hear my people categorized as animals, rapists, criminals because they seek asylum. I don't want our government to rip apart families, leaving babies without their parents in some weird, cruel interpretation of the law. I don't want religious freedom to mean only white Christians get to make the rules. I don't want women to die at the hands of the man who is supposed to love them and I don't want them to be forced to obey someone else's definition of morality.
Our country has become so cruel that it hurts my heart and fills my eyes with tears EVERY DAMN DAY.
It has gotten so bad that when we hear stories of simple common decency we elevate those citizens to hero status. Those examples of kindness are so far removed from what we hear every day that we automatically hold them as shining examples of sainthood.
I'm ok with highlighting those good moments. PLEASE, give me more of them. I just think it is a sad commentary on the supposed "Greatest country on Earth" that those stories are the exception and not the norm. We must do better.
Simple kindnesses are seen as heroic acts in this society because it has become overwhelmingly cruel.
Now don't get me wrong, these kinds of stories have always existed and good samaritans really are everywhere. People do good things all the time! It is *really* nice to hear a feel-good story and I am grateful for them.
But I am noticing, more and more, that simple neighborly conduct is being labeled specifically as "Heroic". And I believe that is because we are living in a country that has normalized cruelty so much that any report of someone being a decent human being FEELS like heroism. Damn, that makes me sad.
I don't want to feel like mass shootings are normal. I don't want to hear hateful rhetoric spouted about my neighbors. I don't want to see obnoxiously proud white racists hiding behind a flag that they say is heritage. I didn't want to read that story about a grown ass man assaulting a child because that child didn't take off his hat for the national anthem. I don't want people who read about that story to say "I bet he'll take off his hat next time. His parents should have taught him more respect." I don't want the occupant of the White House to tell women of color who are American citizens and duly elected officials to go back to their shit hole countries. I don't want to hear my people categorized as animals, rapists, criminals because they seek asylum. I don't want our government to rip apart families, leaving babies without their parents in some weird, cruel interpretation of the law. I don't want religious freedom to mean only white Christians get to make the rules. I don't want women to die at the hands of the man who is supposed to love them and I don't want them to be forced to obey someone else's definition of morality.
Our country has become so cruel that it hurts my heart and fills my eyes with tears EVERY DAMN DAY.
It has gotten so bad that when we hear stories of simple common decency we elevate those citizens to hero status. Those examples of kindness are so far removed from what we hear every day that we automatically hold them as shining examples of sainthood.
I'm ok with highlighting those good moments. PLEASE, give me more of them. I just think it is a sad commentary on the supposed "Greatest country on Earth" that those stories are the exception and not the norm. We must do better.
Comments
Post a Comment