Can Silence Ever Be an Ally's Choice?©

Can Silence Ever Be an Ally's Choice?© A Preamble

Being a quiet person affords me both an incredible privilege and a curse: the ability to hear the screams of silence.

It’s unbelievable that amidst all the chaos, bombing, and cries across the globe, all I can hear is silence. Is it just me?

Perhaps I am living in a numb, alternative reality. After all, I am privileged enough to be where I am at this time, but recently, all I am hearing is:

- The silence killing millions of people

- The silence paralysing the majority

- The silence dehumanising millions of others

- The silence marginalising the rest

All in the name of what? It is incredible how we can find reasoning for everything, yet upon reflection, these reasons often turn out to be no reasons at all, merely excuses for poor or uninformed reasoning.

We have witnessed the consequences of past atrocities.

We (thought we) had learnt our lessons.

We said, "never again, it will happen" yet it happens.

We have regrouped and collectively made decisions—were they the right ones? Perhaps they were tainted by a vendetta or a slight dose of revenge.

We have taken steps to institutionalise organisations to prevent what atrocities brought us, to create watchdogs and act—the very same institutions that are failing us today due to the myriad technicalities we have created. Perhaps, back then, we thought anyone attending these organisations would be reasonable, sensible, and logical. After all, we all collectively emerged from traumatic experiences.

When the unreasonable, insensible, and illogical become the norms—polarisation and extremism are everywhere!

When being reasonable has become outdated,

When doing the right thing has become the odd thing to do,

When we have lost a sense of humanity and human kindness to humankind,

Is it reasonable to expect that things will sort themselves out?

Is it reasonable to expect that people will do the right thing?

So here are my questions to us, we, the people:

- What will the history books say 30 years from now about our silence?

- Is it that the relative global peace since the second half of the 20th century has given us a lost sense of purpose? By relative peace, I mean genuinely relative, given the number of wars still happening in some regions or countries. I said relative in the context of a global coalition or force against another one.

- Could purpose only be found in opposition to something?

- What will we say to our grandchildren when they ask what we have done? And why have we done it or not done anything?

I don’t have the answers to these questions, but here they are, haunting me again and again.

I have written about history repeating itself and our collective amnesia or inability to reflect on past mistakes. This is beyond amnesia; this is a collective coma and self-destruction.

Says the proud, loud, quiet person that I am:

- Can silence ever be an ally's choice?

- Can silence ever be a human choice?

Selective blindness, atrocities, or abomination—specifically regarding a certain category of population—usually from the south, usually with darker skin color or more curly hair, usually from modest economic backgrounds, usually with names unfamiliar to Western ears, usually involving women and children—will never be a justification for our silence, but rather an amplifier.

Creative agitation or deflection on other issues is merely a cover-up; it doesn’t solve issues either.

It’s high time we listen to the silence of the silenced.

- We owe it to the displaced families in Sudan.

- We owe it to the children in Gaza.

- We owe it to the struggling communities in Lebanon.

- We owe it to the starving people in Yemen.

- What have we done about the suffering in Ukraine?

- Where is the hope for migrants crossing dangerous borders?

- What about the children who lack access to quality education?

- What about the communities battling malaria or HIV every day?

- How about the women fighting for equality and safety?

- How about individuals fighting for acceptance of their sexual orientation and gender identity?

- How about the families striving for financial inclusion and stability?

- How about the individuals with physical, mental, or intellectual disabilities?

- What about those facing Islamophobia and other forms of faith-based discrimination?

- When did you last think about George Floyd or Breonna Taylor?

- How about the planet suffering from climate change?[1]

When will enough be enough for us to act?

It’s high time we listen to the silence of the silenced. Can you hear them?

Kassira Y.

 Note:

1. These are my thoughts and perspectives. Article assisted by AI for proofreading.
2. This is my personal profile, and I do not speak on behalf of any affiliated organisations unless specified.

[1] This list is not intended to be exhaustive and could be tailored to any form of conflict, injustice, and discrimination happening regardless of the location

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