![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Jan. 8th, 2011 03:06 pmThe Westboro Church is coming to my campus to protest, as far as I can tell, our existence.
American is a very liberal college campus. There is a reason why I go here, after all. So I can understand why they might see something wrong with us, but coming to our campus to wander around and yell at people seems rather stupid. The school is not going to shut down because they came. The students are not going to change because they came (indeed, the counter-protest is already swelling in numbers). So they come to protest our existence, and that is just ridiculous.
Still, there is something terribly alarming about these people. Their lack of care and respect for the world around me physically makes me feel ill. I'm not angry with them, I'm just... disappointed. How can there be people out there who have only got anger and fear mongering, and no sense of common decency?
Kat's way of deal it is to shrug it off, ignore them, and there are merits to this. After all, these people need an audience in order for there to be a reason for them to be listened to. If no one shows up to hear them, then they seem even more stupid. If everyone was smart they wouldn't show up to counter protest.
Unfortunately, our side also has some anger issues.
These people know how to insight the worst in people and in doing so, they bring out their audiences. Someone said in a comment that there is no point to arguing with these people, they are cold and hard, and nothing you say will sway them, and I am a strong believer that it is true. Again the logical thing to do is to ignore them, but like a bully who is bored, these people will not stop until they have someone to preform for, and so they will seek out those that will fight them.
I can't just ignore these people. Ignoring them feels like it comes from a place of fear for me, not because of the logical conclusion that ignoring them is best. I fear, not their damnations, or their words, but their effect on other people. I want to stand up to them. I know its not worth it, they won't change, but deep down, the part of me that is afraid of them, I want to stand up because that way, I can face my own fears, and when the world changes, when things go wrong, I can know I was on the right side, and prove it with action.
American is a very liberal college campus. There is a reason why I go here, after all. So I can understand why they might see something wrong with us, but coming to our campus to wander around and yell at people seems rather stupid. The school is not going to shut down because they came. The students are not going to change because they came (indeed, the counter-protest is already swelling in numbers). So they come to protest our existence, and that is just ridiculous.
Still, there is something terribly alarming about these people. Their lack of care and respect for the world around me physically makes me feel ill. I'm not angry with them, I'm just... disappointed. How can there be people out there who have only got anger and fear mongering, and no sense of common decency?
Kat's way of deal it is to shrug it off, ignore them, and there are merits to this. After all, these people need an audience in order for there to be a reason for them to be listened to. If no one shows up to hear them, then they seem even more stupid. If everyone was smart they wouldn't show up to counter protest.
Unfortunately, our side also has some anger issues.
These people know how to insight the worst in people and in doing so, they bring out their audiences. Someone said in a comment that there is no point to arguing with these people, they are cold and hard, and nothing you say will sway them, and I am a strong believer that it is true. Again the logical thing to do is to ignore them, but like a bully who is bored, these people will not stop until they have someone to preform for, and so they will seek out those that will fight them.
I can't just ignore these people. Ignoring them feels like it comes from a place of fear for me, not because of the logical conclusion that ignoring them is best. I fear, not their damnations, or their words, but their effect on other people. I want to stand up to them. I know its not worth it, they won't change, but deep down, the part of me that is afraid of them, I want to stand up because that way, I can face my own fears, and when the world changes, when things go wrong, I can know I was on the right side, and prove it with action.
