A lesson in tolerance

Posted on Jan 6, 2006 by jason

I think everyone should read this post over at Pam’s House Blend. It’s anecdotally factual and makes a critically important point.

So that’s my lesson in tolerance for the New Year — you won’t get tolerance until you demand it, and you won’t be tolerated until you are seen. For some here, it’s coming out of the closet. For me, it’s proudly standing up as a cannabis consumer. For others, it may be letting your friends or co-workers know you don’t appreciate the racist or sexist or homophobic joke. Whatever the issue, it is much easier for people to be hateful and intolerant when the “they” is an unknown, shadowy, distant figure. When the “they” is someone they know, love, play, or work with, stereotypes fail and prejudices fade.

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3 Responses to “A lesson in tolerance”

jenny

Jan 07, 2006

I strongly agree. You will also find some others who will gain courage and stand with you.

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jason

Jan 08, 2006

Agreed. In fact, some of those who have been intolerant will find a new point of view in the unseemliness of their own intolerance — once someone stands against it.

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jenny

Jan 08, 2006

Yes, that’s true. I like to phrase it in a way that throws some of their so-called beliefs back at them, but let them draw their own conclusions.

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