Tim's Tales: There will be a rainbow or a glowing sunset

The question is not, will it work? But rather, how much will it work? How many people can be caught in its net, and for how long?

I’m talking about hate and dehumanization. It’s an age-old strategy by those in power or seeking power.

An old maxim says that if you don’t learn the lessons from history, you are bound to repeat the mistakes.

But having studied history, it seems to me that one of the lessons is that too many people do forget those lessons, and I fear we are witnessing such growing amnesia.

The net is being cast and the harvest of hate seems to be growing. Maybe this sounds a bit too doomsday.

I’m an optimistic kind of person, I tend to see the positive in things, so when there has been a dull rainy day, I look forward to the possibility of a rainbow or a glowing sunset.

I’m a storyteller by trade and vocation, and I love stories which have happy endings, even though it may have seemed impossible. 

As my kids will say, “Anything can happen in a story”, and the beauty of it is that we can make up our own stories and give them happy endings, even if the challenges seemed insurmountable.

Let’s come back to that idea later.

The thing is, as I look around the world, I try not to have a sense of despair at the fact so many people are being caught in the net of hate and dehumanization, that they are being convinced that certain human beings are less human than others, even that some have less or no right to exist.

It feels like a basic tenant of democracy is faltering.

We may believe that democracy, however we define it, will, in the end, triumph; that despite dark days, there will be that rainbow at the end.

Democracy by its very nature must allow diverse opinions and visions for society.

It also means that the majority are constrained by laws that define human rights and accountability as universal, not just for certain groups or people.

But when people have been mesmerised by the peddlers of hate, when people who are experiencing poverty are made to believe poverty is caused by other poor people, when we become inured to atrocities because they affect people ‘other’ than ourselves, when we fall prey to the tactic of hate to divide, then democracy can be unravelled by those who want power without the constraints of democracy and its accountability.

I’ll say it plainly: there is a new age of authoritarianism and fascism dawning, and it’s riding on the back of political narratives of hate and division, and given an extra spin by conspiracy theorists.

We can’t be smug or complacent, and think it’s just happening ‘over there’, be it in mainland Europe or the USA, or other places in the world.  It’s on our doorstep too.

We would fail to learn the lessons of history if we don’t work together to unweave the nets of hate, and bring shared humanity to the centre of our debates.

This is not a naive call for us all just to be nice to each other and not argue. Arguing and passionately disagreeing is an essential element of democracy.

We will have different visions and beliefs. But for democracy to work, there needs to be core values that are shared, and that has to include a recognition of our universal common humanity.

Helping that value to grow and thrive is everyone’s responsibility. It’s not even about politics, it’s about connection, understanding, empathy, tolerance and kindness; it’s about our individual and societal way of being.

These are the antidotes to hate and division. We need spaces to share our stories and respectfully listen to the stories of others.

Art, music, poetry, song, customs and traditions can unite and make connections. Folk tales can reveal our commonality.

Appeasement of hate doesn’t work. But we need to find ways to unpick it in ways that promote an understanding of its manipulative intent.

Narratives of hate and dehumanization are clever, often cloaked like wolves in sheep’s clothing, pretending to speak to your concerns yet eroding the core value of shared humanity we all need to make democracy work and have a humane society.

If that core value is eroded, then democracy will wither and the peddlers of hate will reap the harvest. That is a lesson history has taught us and it’s one that should never be forgotten.

I look at my youngest kids as they grow up and I wonder what the world will be like when they are adults. I hope that as they emerge into adulthood, there will be a rainbow on the horizon because, in the end, I believe that the good in people’s hearts is stronger than words of hate.

My kids, your kids, everyone’s kids, me, you, your family and friends, those who we don’t know, those who are different, even those we don’t agree with, or like or understand. . . we are all connected with a common humanity.

As a storyteller, I have a responsibility to use my craft to promote that humanity.  We all do, in whatever ways we can.

Hate is not defeated with more hate. That’s the challenge.