My motto for social activism.
"Qui tacet consentire videtur" (He who is silent is understood to consent)
When you sit by and watch things happen, you are making it safe for others to create a culture of hostility. When someone says something racist and you stay silent; when you see a man pursuing an intoxicated girl and you walk away; when you are with someone making fun of a homeless person and say nothing... you have essentially let that person know it's ok for them to be racist/classist/sexist/etc.
It's not enough to just hold yourself to a higher standard, you have to hold those around you accountable as well. Otherwise there will never be anything or anyone telling them that their behavior is unacceptable.
Being an agent of change in the world can be as simple as telling someone to stop or that they are being disrespectful or that you won't tolerate that conversation or behavior around you. Silence makes you complicit.
When you sit by and watch things happen, you are making it safe for others to create a culture of hostility. When someone says something racist and you stay silent; when you see a man pursuing an intoxicated girl and you walk away; when you are with someone making fun of a homeless person and say nothing... you have essentially let that person know it's ok for them to be racist/classist/sexist/etc.
It's not enough to just hold yourself to a higher standard, you have to hold those around you accountable as well. Otherwise there will never be anything or anyone telling them that their behavior is unacceptable.
Being an agent of change in the world can be as simple as telling someone to stop or that they are being disrespectful or that you won't tolerate that conversation or behavior around you. Silence makes you complicit.
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