Don’t Consider Me Your Enemy

Many people resist or reject change when the future looks uncertain. They fear we may be moving in the wrong direction. So, they instead support going back to the way things were before. The problem is that past times were oppressive and painful for large numbers of the population. History has always moved in a forward motion. 

The life we aspire to is ahead of us, not in the past. What we must realize is that in the process of seeking a better future, there are no enemies. Living in a democracy is not an easy task. Not so to live in a dictatorship. You see, in a dictatorship, everything is decided for us and imposed by force. I rather live within a system that allows me to be who I am and respect my individuality. I reject seeing those who don't think like me as enemies, even when some of them see me as the enemy. I choose to respect them.

 That doesn't mean I will stay quiet and not engage in the public sphere. But I do so knowing that the vast majority of people want to live in peace and want all to prosper in all areas of life. This means that, even when I uphold some conservative social positions, I will not support political movements or leaders who reject the premise I articulated above. 

I will always choose to live in a messy democracy. But the only way we can survive and flourish in a democracy is when every person is respected, and their human dignity is upheld above anything else. 

+Carlos