Dehumanizing

Separation is the core problem to poverty. Us and them.

Create a system that is there to help those in need and then blame the system when it doesn’t work. “Not my problem.”

We love having someone to criticize, especially when there is no face or name to the problem. “Someone else is to blame.”

And it’s easy to ignore problems when they don’t show up on our doorstep. The age old question, if a tree falls in the woods and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Physically distancing ourselves makes it easy to pretend problems don’t exist. “What problem?”

Labels are another way to dehumanize people. You are no longer human, you are homeless, an addict, a convict, an illegal alien, an orphan, someone with a disability, gay…labels create division and classes.

Statistics take out the humanity in reducing people into numbers. “A single death is a tragedy, a million deaths are a statistic,” Joseph Stalin.

The common bond is we are all humans. With hopes and dreams and fears and insecurities and stories. We can tap into the humanity if we decide to show up without judgement.

Sure the problems of inequality are enormous. No one person is going to bring balance. But the choice is small to extend a hand. Adopting a posture of generosity and kindness. We don’t need your opinion. We need you to stand up and make a difference.