INDIFFERENCE

During my middle school teaching career we held a lot of assemblies. Some were fundraisers, some were live music/art/dance presentations, some were about the dangers of drugs, how to make healthy choices and most of them blend together in my mind. There were two, however, that I think about to this day. Both of them were for the 8th graders only and both took place several years apart. Both caused tears, deep thought and resulted in being able to hear a pin drop in a gymnasium containing more than 200 adolescents. Believe me when I tell you, experiencing that kind of silence has some power.

Assembly one: Larry Scott, Rachel’s Challenge

Larry is Rachel’s Uncle. Rachel Scott was murdered in the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. Members of her family started an organization to teach America’s youth about kindness. In his talk, Larry spoke of Rachel’s values and also taught the students about the events of that horrible day. I encourage you to click the link to learn the powerful message. While speaking, Larry shared a photo of Rachel’s hands that she traced, at age 13, on the back of the bureau in her bedroom. Inside the hands she wrote “These hands belong to Rachel Joy Scott and will someday touch millions of people’s hearts.”

He followed with the fact that her family did not know about this writing, or Rachel’s traced hands until they were cleaning her bedroom after she was murdered by school shooters. Not only was it a powerful moment, but Larry brought a huge banner for all of our students to sign, pledging to practice kindness. Mr. Scott also had a focus group of about 15 students meet with him, following the assembly. He worked with the group teaching them to be ambassadors of Rachel’s Challenge, and urged them to share kindness lessons with the student body, family and friends.

I was lucky enough, through tears, to shake Mr. Scott’s hand and thank him for coming from Colorado to New Hampshire to spread the message. To date, Rachel’s Challenge is going strong and its ambassadors and staff have met with more than 30 million students around the world. You can take the pledge HERE. It costs nothing to be kind.

Assembly 2: Survivors of The Holocaust and Kristallnacht

This was the most life-changing talk that I have ever witnessed anywhere. A colleague of mine invited a man and a woman, in their 80’s at the time, to school to speak about their experiences in a Nazi death camp AND their survival of Kristallnacht. I don’t need to tell you how this assembly went over with the kids. There were tears, whispers of wanting to know more, and questions about how something like this could ever have been allowed to happen. The two survivors showed newsreels on a large screen, as well as still photos while interjecting their personal stories and memories. At times, I was sick to my stomach and the kids sitting with me went through a few boxes of tissues.

At one point, the woman asked the kids to define the opposite of hate. Many of them yelled out “love” as a seemingly obvious answer. I naturally thought that as well, but then the survivors came to the crux of their talk. They told the kids that the opposite of hate is not love.

It is indifference.

They went on to explain how they were in disbelief that people were rounded up, deported, and eventually killed while a large group of their fellow humans were indifferent. There were very few acts of kindness during their years of torment and they could only wonder how and why so many people had the attitude of not caring, or caring but not taking action. The words, stories and images that these people shared with the room was life altering. I also sat in disbelief as they explained that indifference is the worn fabric that will ultimately destroy society if we do not consistently talk, share, and remember human history. I was shaking as I took their hands in mine after their talk. I saw in their eyes sadness, but yet, compassion burdened by their need to tell as many people as would listen, what they lived through all those years ago. As I said, a truly powerful assembly.

Fast forward to last week. I decided to conduct a little experiment on social media. We all understand that the main point of social media is to keep you on it. This is why it has all the bandwidth: friends, likes, shares, photos, groups, events and so on. ALL of it to keep you clicking, engaged and checking in several times a day. If this sounds like a drug addiction, that’s because it is. Just for you people who like to hear it from more than one place, here’s some science.

I shared 2 posts that I knew would attract some responses: one about our national parks, and one of Mike Pence regarding the war in Ukraine. I did not state if I did or did not agree. I just put them up. BOOM. The national park one got an argument going in no time (great for Facebook….because….addiction). People immediately attacked the source, the content, and the topic. Some of the responses became heated and personal, while ALL of them attempted to prove that they were right. 60 Comments, 5 “shares” and a lot of posturing. Not one person said a word about anyone else’s thoughts or feelings. No one interrupted the yelling to ask a question or to try to see another view. Everyone just piled on. Indifference. Is it more important to prove yourself right on social media than remembering that we are all fellow human beings? If we are all too busy proving how right we are, we are going to stop giving a shit about how others feel. Indifference.

Am I comparing social media to the Holocaust? Of course not. Am I guilty of indifference? You bet. I have blocked people from my own social media accounts due to feeling that they have taken an issue too far. I would rather not know how they feel so that when I see them in real life, I won’t harbor feelings of prejudice. It has nothing to do with how I feel about them as a human being; I try to be kind to everyone. It’s getting harder and harder for me to understand why caring and kindness have taken a backseat to trying to prove who is right.

I have removed the posts, so don’t bother to look for them. I am not going to enable anyone’s social media addiction. In fact, I will no longer post anything other than a link to these blogs, and other writings that I do. Am I indifferent? Let’s remember a time before everyone sat at a keyboard and had a microphone. I am going to spend my time and energy talking with people and seeing them in real life. Remember to care. I’ve learned that in middle school assemblies.

Stay safe, stay awesome, and stay tuned.