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The Cycle of Discrimination

A Darkness of Closed Minds

By r. nuñezPublished 4 years ago 1 min read
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Is this them ... or us?

The Darkness of Closed Minds

The cycle begins

With a lack of understanding

Of the unknown…

Who is the other?

How does the other see us?

What might the other do to us?

How will their presence affect us?

~

This lack of understanding

Leads to apprehension.

The collective apprehension

Creates a minor individual sense of fear.

~

Having to live with that fear

Leads to resentment.

When the individual resentment

Is drawn into a collective state,

The mob mentality

Spirals into hate.

~

Collective hate

Leads to a misguided,

Preemptive,

Defensive attitude.

~

This attitude leads

To intolerance and segregation;

And when these appear

Not to be enough,

They lead to anger,

And anger leads to violence.

~

Anger and violence cause

A lack of understanding and fear

In the other, and so,

The cycle is complete.

~

The Simplicity of Light

None of this matters, really.

What matters

Is that it could all be avoided

Simply by seeking

To understand the unknown,

With an open mind

And an open heart.

~

Who is the other?

They are exactly that;

They are somebody else.

~

How does the other see us?

They probably see us

With the same apprehension

As we see them.

~

What might the other do to us?

Most likely,

They will do to us as we do to them.

~

How will their presence affect us?

How will our presence affect them?

r. nuñez, 7/2014

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About the Creator

r. nuñez

I am a shamanic priest who loves to write stories, poetry, and songs. Retired, but still helping people, animals, and the planet.

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