Recently I’ve been discouraged by the inaction of so many of my peers. Why don’t people feel more compelled to take action towards a more just society and world? Why aren’t rights important enough to work towards or fight for? In a quest for understanding I wonder if the issues we face seem too large and numerous, or the situations too futile to rectify. Maybe our memberships within privileged groups create self-sustaining bubbles that are too comforting to challenge lest they pop beneath us. Or, perhaps widespread inaction is evidence of a larger societal shift towards disconnection from a sense of the collective— a signal that we have become too adept at separating our lives from those around us, and too distracted by everyday obstacles to see beyond ourselves. While there are many possible reasons for inaction, my greatest fear is in the roles of indifference and an inability to empathize, in the maintenance of the status quo. In other words, I fear that people just don’t care enough to act.
Most of us can empathize to a certain extent with those we identify with and those who affirm and legitimize our own feelings and experiences. But, where does one’s ability to empathize end and why? When we dehumanize or disregard people or groups who we feel are too different from ourselves, we demonstrate a failure to empathize. The products of such failure can be seen across the globe in acts of hate and in policies and systems that single out, disadvantage, and endanger minority populations or systematically lift up and privilege a small portion above the rest. Even if we aren’t instrumental in creating such circumstances, our lack of action contributes to their perpetuation. When we fail to act, what kind of reality do we support? Somehow we can conveniently forget someone’s humanity when it suits us, when we aren’t ready to see them as equals, or when we aren’t ready to see ourselves as the problem.
So, what does drive us to take action? Most people will say that before we can take meaningful action, we must first be moved to a place that compels us to do something, because in that moment ‘doing’ nothing is no longer an option. Something must happen that grabs our attention, electrifies the center of our being and wills us forward. Until we feel something and somehow find the link between our well-being and that of others, we are unlikely to act. This is why I believe empathy becomes such a crucial impetus for action and change.
As respect for human rights is secondary to a sense of respect for other humans, I believe empathy to be key in working towards the realization of universal rights. Before we can understand the importance of others sharing in rights and justice, we must first be able to enter into their experiences and emotions on a deeper level. We must venture to see ourselves in others and in turn address others with respect and the injustices they face with urgency. In a world that often seems more divisive than it is united, I believe we must help create more empathic communities. As the architects of our societies the most important work we can ever do is that which begins within ourselves. No matter how pure our desire to do the right thing or how well we can sympathize, we can always work on our ability to empathize with others and both, understand and break down personal barriers that lead us to indifference. Because empathy has the power to positively impact us and everyone we come into contact with, it has transformational power and reach that we sorely need. Thus, with a little more empathy from each of us, change may be gradual, but I believe it will be inevitable.