If you’ve had enough of bad news, or you can relate to anything in my last couple of poems – check out this news article today. It’s a fine example of diversity in action in Australia.
In truth, we have all sorts of people here with very loud voices representing their various interests and, oftentimes they are all arguing with one another. Dan represents the voice that almost never gets heard and it’s a testament to our shared humanity that his beautiful attitude (in my humble opinion) has even made it’s way into the news stream.
Objecting, opposing, denouncing, calling out bad behaviour, resisting, etc. they all have their place. Here’s a reminder that there is also another way…
Jambo Robyn 
There are many similar sentiments here in the US – noticeably from people who, themselves, never learned another language. Culturally and linguistically monolithic. Having learned 5 languages and bits and pieces from several others, I take pleasure in hearing people speak their native language(s) – it adds so much color and interest to my environment.
There was a story circulating on FB – a white American male stood in line, behind a woman customer, at a supermarket checkout. She was talking on her cellphone, in another language. He told her that this was America and she needed to speak English now, or else go back to Mexico. She turns to him and informs him that she was indeed speaking one of America’s native languages – Navajo!
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Those types of close-minded views seem to be regularly publicised – it’s been bugging me lately and affecting my day-to-day reality in negative ways.
I also love having access to all the different languages, cultures, music, art, food and even religions – it’s all quite awesome.
The examples of challenging comments in the article that Dan so deftly deflects and patiently redirects are typical attitudes experienced by many diverse groups in Australia and I would hazard to guess in the majority of First World countries.
So I’m chuffed to know that along with all the outrage and uproar from people who disagree, we have people like Dan demonstrating just how powerful a force love and compassion is. A lot of commenters are thanking Optus and commending Dan for his approach. I’m triply impressed that the company has managed to come up with a marketing strategy that is aimed at inclusiveness and have the right person in place to keep it real.
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I am much less polite and diplomatic when faced with people like that….but I am very glad that there are people like Dan who can keep their cool and respond in a way that it may actually be heard by the target audience…
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It often catches me off guard when people don’t keep their cool because that is the only option I have and even then, only very rarely, mostly I have to put up with whatever is going on or leave.
Your comment has just highlighted the divide for me, no judgment in what I’m saying here and I wish I could say it better as to be sure I’m not offensive, but everything I do is held to a ridiculously high standard by the people around me – one that no other human I have ever met is capable of achieving. There, I said it, finally. Not playing victim and I don’t wish to dwell on it, because I think you probably know what I mean. It’s hard work.
BTW, did you ever see this article? http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/11-ways-white-america-avoids-taking-responsibility-its-racism
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Yes, I understand what you mean, Robyn. I won’t even begin to try and draw any comparisons. Sending you love…
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Thanks Annette. It was just another one of those moments were I got to see something that I couldn’t face earlier. I’ve spent the last day both being grateful that you were the person who helped me see this and realising that I wouldn’t know how to respond to life if it was any other way, everything is arranged around this aspect of life and I find my freedom in other ways. All good.
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Robyn – just read this article by Fareed Zakaria documenting a very interesting shift: http://fareedzakaria.com/2015/12/31/the-great-american-power-shift/
another thing that came to mind was this: what if we created a global think tank that included people from different religious and racial backgrounds – people who are intelligent, honest, introspective, willing to look at the inner and outer dimensions of change? That’s as far as I got…
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That’s an interesting article because I predicted or assumed this would be the case years ago. Those who have the perceived advantage are in danger of becoming irrelevant to the evolution of humans. Not because I know anything about anything, however, simple observation shows me that those under the greatest pressure – should they survive – will develop an advantage over those who have it “easy”. The way I see it, an easy life in common terms, is a foolish way to live in terms of survival of the species because it provides no advantage when environmental circumstances change. Plus it’s only easy on the outside, it provides no food for the soul whatsoever. It does not practice or grow the adaptive function – which I believe to be our greatest gift. It’s funny that this post has linked to some really old “related” posts about this very topic in an online conversation I was having with a blogger years ago. I read them this morning… as coincidences go.
I put it to you that a global think tank, formal or not, is already underway. Various people from all walks of life have the ability to communicate directly and provide diverse input in an ad-hoc manner. We don’t need anyone in particular to listen nor do we need some kind of hierarchical structure or formality to this collaboration because the next step forward for humanity will be different from the last step forward and all the steps before that. The appropriate structure will likely only become evident in hindsight, any attempt to constrain it to a particular form may limit the possibilities. A friend I meet with every month, the most common thing I say to him is do not invest all of your energy into solidifying a future where global conditions will be as they have always been, where money will have the same relevance or greed, division, violence and ruthlessness are dominant. It is unlikely that humanity will survive such concepts, better to learn how to be self-sufficient or live in true community. We are and have always been at the precipice of great change, of great leaps forward or backwards, depending on where one stands to begin with. This is not some bizarre prophecy – history shows us that we cannot continue in this way indefinitely. Sharing the knowledge, experiences, techniques and inspirations of a diverse range of humans is so fundamentally important that we have already created the technology and done our best to make it accessible to the whole human race – and there was no governing authority that decided that we should all be connected, it just happened, and no-one is willing to have that taken away. In fact, we need to ensure that everyone in the world can talk with whomever they need to. There will likely come a day when the formerly oppressed will need to help feed, house and clothe their former oppressors – hate and division will only make that process and the transitions totally unbearable. I don’t want middle America to die off, their contribution to the world is awesome, but no less awesome than that of every single human being. Here in Australia the men, teenage boys and upwards, such a huge percentage of them are committing suicide and no-one knows what to do. At this stage we can be sure that dividing the community even further is NOT the answer. Collective wisdom and compassion is.
All over the place I know, just some of the things on my mind.
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I agree with you – people who have an “easy” life typically do not develop the kind of resilience, stamina, and persistence, resourcefulness, or creativity that people develop who are faced with a great deal of difficulty. So, when things don’t go their way, it will be harder for them to adjust to adversity than for those who’ve been in hardship training earlier in their lives.
Thanks to the internet, we can be in contact with people all over the world – if that is what we value and seek out. I suspect that our level of consciousness determines who or what we find and connect with. Having passed the half-century mark in my life, I am very conscious of how quickly time flies and that I do have to make choices. What is it I really want to give my energy to – now? I have some ideas and am following up on them in this brand new year…
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I wish you every success with your pursuits, Annette. Love the idea of a global think tank – something I neglected to say in my previous comment. Whatever you choose to do, it’s important to me that people like yourself have a respected position in the community. You have given me a great deal of inspiration and support and I know I’m not the only one. Thank you.
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Would you like to be part of this global think tank? If so, let’s start one 🙂 Oh wait we already did!
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ROFL! Sure thing
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Sounds like the US, both sides. Our diversity makes us stronger.
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Really glad you made me aware of that, Trent. We get bombarded here with negative reports from the US about the current state of race relations which tends to skew our impressions a bit. There really are fabulous, warm-hearted and inclusive people everywhere and I agree with you – diversity makes us stronger. Best wishes to you for 2016.
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I don’t know if race relations have gotten worse since Obama has been in office, but it is much more visible. Fox News doesn’t even try to hide its racism. But I also think that in ways it has gotten better, if for no other reason than it is more visible and people can understand that it isn’t something from the past, that it still exists. Of course there is a huge amount of cultural diversity here. What Dan said about Melbourne is true about most of our big cities. Yes, there are warm-hearted and inclusive people everywhere. I hope you have a great year ahead too.
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Countries that the world has it’s eyes on such as Australia and USA get noticed for such things, but my travels in various other countries teaches me that respect of even visitors that don’t speak the language is often non-existent. Also, I have yet to find such a country / culture that doesn’t complain about arrogant Americans etc (not myself, since I embrace every piece of each culture) that don’t appreciate their culture, food, etc when visiting. BUT, those same cultures living in the USA will openly say how they will never jump on ship with American culture and hate our food. It’s a world of a billion narrow views, each different, and each 100% correct in the mind of the holder. I think if someone goes to live in a country it’s logical and respectful to learn the language. Wanna speak other languages as well, fine! I like that
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Why do you think that is, Scott?
Personally, it’s taken many years of observation for me to perceive that there’s a kind of pattern around the (non) acceptance of diversity. It seems to have a lot do to with feeling safe compared to feeling comfortable within the common framework of (resisting) change.
As a traveller, I assume you would be quite comfortable with changing circumstances, plus I notice you are a particularly empathetic human. Similarly, holding onto preconceived ideals doesn’t fit with the way life goes for me, so I am more likely to embrace change and difference, albeit with a bit of protesting and faux resistance when it becomes too uncomfortable.
The other idea your comment brought to mind was the concept of reciprocity. When I take a step closer towards those I find different they often respond in kind, not always politely at first, but mutual recognition seems to help bridge the gap. What is interesting about the language thing is that it takes time for people to learn a language and when someone is trying to communicate using a new language, it can be difficult for them to express their usual selves. They will undoubtedly be misunderstood a lot of the time. From there it’s a natural conclusion for me to consider that narrow views have a lot to do with an individual’s threshold for discomfort, which may be increased by a situation of reciprocity. It can become truly difficult at the point where the feeling of discomfort escalates into feeling unsafe.
Not sure where all that came from, Scott, but thanks for prompting me to think about it 🙂 and I wish you all the good things for 2016!
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