When I was a high school senior back in Lynn Haven, Florida one of my teachers asked us to write what we thought was the biggest problem in the world. I remember writing intolerance.
Even back then I saw the challenges people faced with religion, race and other areas where it seemed there was a lack of respect and understanding for people on the other side.
We are in a time when intolerance seems to be especially high. We have two or more entrenched camps for almost every topic. It appears especially pronounced in politics these days.
I was recently traveling for business and had a chance to read the USA Today newspaper. One of the interesting sections of the paper is the letters to the editor. Since the paper has readers from all over the country there are very different opinions on most every topic.
I find it fascinating to read one person’s opinion and in the next paragraph another opinion that is diametrically opposed. It is like they have completely different views of the same event. The words and images mean something different to each of them.
Since I’ve been thinking about tolerance, I’m trying to look at both sides of opposing opinions. I try not to just hear what each are saying but go through the logic and even the emotions behind the conclusion. Of course I can’t completely succeed because my set of beliefs, my knowledge, and my feelings are my own. I can’t know what they are thinking or how they view the world. Their facts may be very different from mine. Their beliefs certainly are.
Nonetheless, I want to accept both positions. I want to know they are both okay. I might agree with one of them more than another, but that does not make the other wrong. It is okay too.
An example is the immigration ban. One person is against it and one is for it. One person wants to ignore the law and keep criminals in America to take jobs away from hardworking Americans. The other wants to split up families and destroy the economy that is built on low wage immigrant workers.
My challenge is to look at both of those opinions and know each is okay. The individuals impacted by the immigration ban have their own choices to make. They have their life to live and their experiences to create. What I think while sitting comfortably in my living room typing away at my computer has little to no impact on people impacted by the ban. I am not impacted either unless I choose to be.
Shifting my focus away from the contentiousness and looking at what it means to me is key. While we are all connected, we are each individuals and can choose our role in this world. It is not necessary for any of us to decide what is right or wrong for others.
