Shyama Parui
By Shyama Parui
In mid-January as Buddhist monks passed through the Carolinas on their “Walk for Peace”, I was amazed to see the overwhelmingly positive posts about them featured in social media. Bhikkhu Paññākāra, the spiritual leader of this pilgrimage explains, “We walk not to protest, but to awaken the peace that already lives within each of us.”
The Walk for Peace is a simple yet meaningful reminder that unity and kindness begin within each of us and can radiate outward to families, communities, and society as a whole.
In a world where we are constantly bombarded with disturbing news and are surrounded by negativity, this beautiful message is just as powerful as it is profound. It ignites hope for a better future where perhaps equality is fundamental.
In the words of Martin Luther King Jr, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Yet, one comes across examples of unfairness daily. One could surmise that 99% of people believe in equality but I doubt that more than 1% will agree on any given definition of equality.
Personally, I believe that equality (i.e. equal rights and respect for all) either exists or it does not, but others may not think of it as an absolute concept. For example, men may mistakenly think that they support gender equality because they “permit” their wives and daughters to pursue a career and that is sufficient even though it is far from complete.
In an entertaining scenario, actor Farhan Akhtar’s character in the Hindi movie, Dil Dhadakne Do, explains how this idea simply offers a small token of equality and a man’s self-imposed authority to “allow” what a woman can do, implies that the male head of the family is in a superior position. Let’s take another example. Made in Heaven, where a drama series about wedding planners in Delhi delicately weaves social issues related to marriage. In an episode that tackled caste-based prejudice, a traditional upper caste male character fumes, “equality ki bhi hadh hoti hai” which translates to, “there is a limit to equality.” These realistic, albeit fictitious situations reflect the reluctance of individuals to fully accept other humans as equals.
History has borne witness to the lack of parity across time and cultures. Even today, there are some states that sanction unfair practices to weaken certain groups based on gender, socio economic status or religion. Even in stable, democratic countries which legislate fairness, and their social norms reflect inclusivity, subtle forms of prejudice reveal the ugliness hiding behind the façade of open mindedness. The controversy surrounding the casting of the live action version of Disney’s The Little Mermaid illustrates this point. Members of minority groups who may not have faced blatant discrimination can still share at least one anecdote about how they were at the receiving end of a bigot’s meanness.
It appears that once humans enjoy privilege, they neither wish to share it nor do they want to sacrifice it. Why is it so? Could it be that oppressors have tricked themselves into believing that they are right? Accepting that they are wrong would indicate that they are “bad” and as humans we have a strong need to be thought of as “good”. So, an employer who is paying his relative more than better performers at his company may try to identify minor flaws in the other employees to justify the nepotism.
Progress toward a just society is often damaged by unnecessary fears and misconceptions. A myth that has plagued patriarchal societies is that the institution of family will break down if women work outside the home. The truth is that women in traditional civilizations worked outside the home too. For instance, in agricultural communities, the women, men and older children worked shoulder to shoulder on their farms. Self-awareness and empathy are skills that take years to learn and therefore it is not surprising that people in general fail to recognize how their behavior is discriminatory or offensive. Learning how to avoid that can be humbling as well as admirable. From my personal experience I can share that there were many advantages I enjoyed as a Hindu in India that I did not even realize.
When I moved to the USA, I sensed what it is like to be a minority. Little observations contributed to my understanding of how easy it is to overlook the needs of a smaller, weaker or quieter group. Changing attitudes through introspection may not suddenly lead us into a utopian world, but minor actions can lead to major improvements.
Pursuing the goal of equality will require the collective strength and effort of our entire species. At the very least, we can start by examining our own beliefs and biases. Developing a healthy skepticism about social media feeds that highlight inflammatory views about certain populations can be the next step. One can seek practical solutions to even the playing field instead of simply criticizing others.
Identifying biases in seemingly objective sources such as medical research is also important so that professionals can have a better understanding of the health of the overall population and not just certain groups. I could go on and on but let me end now on a positive note, with a wish that we do not surrender and move forward to attain equality one step at a time.
Shyama Parui is a long time North Carolina resident and an ardent writer. You can reach her at shyamashree_parui@hotmail.com.
