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Weekly Review, Courtesy of the Universe
Aug. 5th, 2004 05:52 amFear of the unknown is one of the most primal and pervasive human fears.
I've been reminded of this by my mother's fears about having another nurturing woman in my household. The Ex's SO is a stranger to her, and this new element in our living situation is new and strange to her. Her response is fear.
I was reminded about my own fears of the unknown during my spiritual direction appointment when I admitted that I have trouble going to new places or even starting new activities because my own instinct is to seek mastery/control/security through knowledge, and when I don't know a place or a way of doing things I feel acutely vulnerable.
Then there was the story I referenced yesterday about Seattle police and Homeland Security agents harrassing a local photography student because he had brown skin and was taking photographs of a local landmark.
The word for the week is xenophobia: fear of the Other, of the Stranger, of those who are Different. I don't know if it can be stretched to cover "fear of the unknown in any form," but for the sake of today's discussion, I will. Rascism is a particular form of xenophobia. So, I believe, is sexism. It is too bad those words gloss over the fact that fear is far more at their root than simple "-ism." At least homophobia is a straightforward word, acknowledging the extreme, irrational fear that it describes.
When we're afraid it becomes so much easier to justify any action because we are "protecting ourselves" or protecting our loved ones, and "protecting" is a loving act. How can you fault someone for being a protector?
Maybe that's what GW Bush and his minions ask themselves when they go to bed at night, probably sincerely puzzled at why they are being so relentlessly criticized not only by the rest of the world but by a large number of their fellow-citizens: We're just trying to keep our people safe!
They have let their fears over-rule their better natures, and it has made them ugly and violent and dangerous and unjust.
May we all have the courage to keep our own fears in check, to seek understanding rather than close our eyes against the bogeyman of The Other, to practice sensible caution but not let it lead us into paranoia.
And vote.
I've been reminded of this by my mother's fears about having another nurturing woman in my household. The Ex's SO is a stranger to her, and this new element in our living situation is new and strange to her. Her response is fear.
I was reminded about my own fears of the unknown during my spiritual direction appointment when I admitted that I have trouble going to new places or even starting new activities because my own instinct is to seek mastery/control/security through knowledge, and when I don't know a place or a way of doing things I feel acutely vulnerable.
Then there was the story I referenced yesterday about Seattle police and Homeland Security agents harrassing a local photography student because he had brown skin and was taking photographs of a local landmark.
The word for the week is xenophobia: fear of the Other, of the Stranger, of those who are Different. I don't know if it can be stretched to cover "fear of the unknown in any form," but for the sake of today's discussion, I will. Rascism is a particular form of xenophobia. So, I believe, is sexism. It is too bad those words gloss over the fact that fear is far more at their root than simple "-ism." At least homophobia is a straightforward word, acknowledging the extreme, irrational fear that it describes.
When we're afraid it becomes so much easier to justify any action because we are "protecting ourselves" or protecting our loved ones, and "protecting" is a loving act. How can you fault someone for being a protector?
Maybe that's what GW Bush and his minions ask themselves when they go to bed at night, probably sincerely puzzled at why they are being so relentlessly criticized not only by the rest of the world but by a large number of their fellow-citizens: We're just trying to keep our people safe!
They have let their fears over-rule their better natures, and it has made them ugly and violent and dangerous and unjust.
May we all have the courage to keep our own fears in check, to seek understanding rather than close our eyes against the bogeyman of The Other, to practice sensible caution but not let it lead us into paranoia.
And vote.
