The courage of being an individual

Insights sometimes come from the least likely conversations and they sometimes set a clear path forward. This one seems obvious (at 1.30am), but is rarely (if ever?) mentioned in the battle against racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamaphobia, ageism...

***

To be true to our liberal values - which we follow to liberate ourselves and others and live better, more enlightened lives - we seek to see the individual value and qualities of people, refrain from passing judgement based on day-to-day or historic stereotypes, and we seek to be reflective so that we judge on evidence.

This liberating gaze - which seeks to enable us to see as it really is, and not glibly crush the dreams and happiness of the other - asks much of the viewer.

However, what is the responsibility of the viewed? Doesn't she have a responsibility to be an individual? Doesn't she have a responsibility to refrain from defining herself by her group? Doesn't she have a responsiblity to be seen in all her glory; free in herself and her capacity and her personal, individual history? And if she doesn't take that responsiblity, does she renegade on her freedom of being gazed as an individual?

This "thought of the day" type post is thanks to a conversation with a young friend. He was being disparaging about some former friends. These classmates were, despite being only 13 and 14, separating themselves from the majority of the other kids and defining themselves increasingly by their religion. Whilst critical of his knee-jerk response, there was a limit that I could condemn him. When individuals aggressively define themselves by their chosen group, it may be quite appropriate to dislike that person for being too white, Muslim, gay, Christian, black, laddish, Jewish, English...

...because, it is depressingly unenlightened and damn annoying, when people fail to have the courage of being an individual and ask you to judge them on their commonness to a group, rather their uniqueness as an individual.

***

If this blog post represents a reasonable thought, the implications for setting the ethical path for our better, more integrated, trusting society shifts away from just the viewer, from which we have focused all our attention, but also to the viewed. If this is nonsense, I'm sure you'll tell me.