We Must Be Better Than This

This past weekend, many politically-based Instagram accounts were created. While these accounts may seem harmless in theory, they were proven to be quite the opposite.

On Friday night, arguments erupted that would last the weekend. Some people were kind, but the vast majority of interactions were rude, mean, and dismissive of other beliefs. Scarier than anything else was the chilling sense of dehumanization.

There was a terrifying amount of people who were treating each other as ideologues rather than peers. This kind of behavior is dangerous. It was present in Nazi Germany, it was present in Stalin’s Russia, and it is present in so much social media today. One might say that the dehumanization present on social media isn’t as big of a problem as Nazi Germany, and they would be right — thus far. But if this type of behavior is allowed to grow and evolve, Americans will face something far worse than an Instagram argument.

In this season of thankfulness, let’s try hard to be better. Lend your ears and heart to someone you disagree with. Lend your mind and abilities to help them out. Most of all — be kind.

I wrote this when the Instagram accounts were first created, but once the situation died down I decided not publish this. I did not want to add fuel to the fire. Recent events have me more concerned than I was before. I am disappointed in the actions of many people. This is not the way to behave.