9/11: Prayers and Reflections

Hey guys! Yes, it's been a while since my last blog, but I have good news: for those who don't already know, I'm going to be returning to Russia to teach ESL. I'm actually leaving in a few weeks time (date still TBA, right now looking at early October) so I've still got lots to do. I promise to keep you updated on preparations and my year as an ESL teacher/eager bowler and choir member. Time to tell the story again! ;)

Today, however, I wanted to say a few words about what 9/11 means to me, especially in light of the recent controversy caused by Rev. Terry Jones' decision to burn the Quran, causing international outcry and protests. First of all, I have to say how relieved I am that he backed down, whatever his motivations may have been. It's unfortunate how public opinion can be shaped by the words of a few hatemongers. It's really unfortunate how quickly the seeds of hate can be sown and spread like wildfire. It's really, really unfortunate that ignorance and fear seem to be so prevalent in today's discourse.

I, and I'm sure many of you remember where you were when the planes hit the towers. I remember sitting in AP U.S. History, watching video and Odi trying to continue with the lesson, but there was no way we were going to concentrate. I remember Matt planning to walk out if classes weren't dismissed, which, thankfully, they were (sometime during 3rd period). That week I stayed with some family friends as my parents were in Bermuda celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary. It was nice to be surrounded by friends who have over the years become family to me, but I really needed to be with mom and dad. I may not have personally known anyone who lost their lives on that day, but I remember being both tremendously sad and extremely proud of our country and of our potential.

Now, whatever faults we might have, wherever you may stand on such controversial issues as the mosque at ground zero controversy, gay marriage or the political spectrum, I am, always have been and always will be proud to be an American. I will defend my country to my dying breath. I will fight for social justice, equality, civil rights and, especially now, tolerance, compassion, love. We need not label Muslims as terrorists, because they're not, and every reasonably well-educated person knows that. We need not deny gays the right to marriage (or openly declare themselves in the military) because they're just as capable as loving another person and defending our freedoms as much as every other American. (I do apologize for preaching from my soapbox, so to speak, just bear with me). We need not tolerate such discriminating and hateful comments on the Internet just because someone feels the need to share a joke in very poor taste which is, more often than not, entirely irrelevant to the conversation or at least does nothing to stimulate open and productive dialogue. What we do need is to take a step back, (re)examine our definition of what it means to be American, and seek a more rational, less impassioned to the point of irrationality dialogue. What we need is to light a candle and say a prayer that we never, EVER give into to some of the insanity that we have been hearing about all to often in the news. Whenever we see or hear about intolerance of other cultures or a racial slur, instead of laughing about it or stereotyping, we should strive to call it out and change how we respond to such comments. Silence is not an option. Silence is ignorance's greatest ally. We all know what can happen when hatred, knowing no boundaries whatsoever, can lead to: just remember the Holocaust, apartheid, the genocides in Armenia, Rwanda, Darfur, ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia.

On this day, when 9 years ago a great nation came together to grieve, to rebuild, we need to a) never EVER forget, b) remember that we, while fighting illegal immigration, are and always have been a nation of immigrants. We also need to remember our own history of denying the Native Americans their land and driving them out; of slavery, ended only by one of the bloodiest wars in our nation's history; of anti-immigration sentiment (not only against the Irish but against others as well); of the KKK and hateful Jim Crow Laws and the fight of African-Americans to receive the same education as whites and eat in the same restaurants and some of the ugly beatings and race riots; of the fact that women were allowed to vote only from 1920 onwards; that gay marriage is still seen in some places not as a civil-rights issue but as a crime against God. The gap between haves and have-nots are ever growing. The growth of the Internet also means the spread of neo-Nazi and other hate speech to everyone, especially those most vulnerable or affected by poverty, illiteracy, hunger, etc. We are by no means a perfect nation, we certainly have been rather imperialist and intolerant of other nations. I, being a White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, am not going to deny the history of our past. That being said, I want to, as always, finish on a positive note. As I said above, on September 11, 2001, we came together, not as Republicans, Democrats, Independents, Mexicans, Italians or French-Canadians, but as AMERICANS, putting our lives on the line to save our colleagues, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives and often complete strangers. We are capable of uniting again in a common fight against inequality, illiteracy and ignorance. We, living in am imperfect democracy, can freely express our opinion, but by doing so, we have an obligation to respect the opinions of others, whether or not we agree with them. We have an obligation to not simply use the First Amendment to justify hate speech or incite riots and spread misinformation. We have an obligation to decency, to good manners. We have an obligation to share what we have (gifts, talents, education) with others. Lastly, we have an obligation to remember. If we do not remember, history, as they say, repeats itself. WE WILL NEVER, EVER FORGET. God bless America and God bless all of you as we all in our own way commemorate the day and define what it means to be American.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is0hXP5Vr08


Remember. Spread love, not hate. Pray. Reflect. Unite. Tolerate. Show compassion. LOVE.