If you don't want to read the entire entry, stick with this: respect the person but not necessarily their ideas.
One of the most relevant debates (at least in my opinion) today is, as the title of this entry indicates, if we, being tolerant, should tolerate intolerance; if in our quest to be inclusive and respect all human beings, we must also accept those people who openly do not offer the same treatment; specifically, whether or not we should tolerate racism, homophobia, transphobia, etc. I do not know about yu guys, but for me it is very clear that regardless of whether we seek to be inclusive and tolerant or not, any ideology that puts another human being over another just because of their race, sex, religion, gender, etc. cannot be accepted or tolerated. And I don't know if you've noticed, but here the contradictions begin.
For those who haven't caught on: I am saying that we should not treat anyone as inferior in any way, but I am also saying that we should not tolerate racism for example. But then, am I not in a way looking down on racist people? Don't these ideas of respecting everyone but completely rejecting all forms of intolerance clash? Do they not cancel each other out? Isn't the rejection of intolerance another form of intolerance in itself?
In a way it is. But, leaving aside the paradox of tolerance, allow me a to clarify a point that I believe that most people do not consider.
First off, let's define: what is tolerance? Google defines tolerance as the "Attitude of the person who respects the opinions, ideas or attitudes of other people even if they do not coincide with their own". I like this definition but it seems incomplete. Tolerance is not only towards other people, but also towards food, smells, substances, sounds, sights ... But well if we analyze, for example, lactose intolerance, although it is a type of intolerance, it is not what people refer to when they say "you have to be tolerant" or even "you have to tolerate everything and everyone" and it is not what I am writing about. Why? Because being lactose intolerant, firsto of all, is not something you do or become voluntarly and 2) it has nothing to do with the problem that tolerance seeks to solve in this context.
So we have established that when people profess tolerance, they are not really referring to tolerance of absolutely everything, or of all existing types of tolerance. What do they mean then? Here again, controversy enters. You see, I think the message of "being tolerant" has been distorted and I'll tell you why. People say "you have to respect everyone and you have to respect the opinions of others." There we have our first disagreement. Do you have to respect everyone? Yes. Do we have to respect everyone's right to opinion? Absolutely, but do you have to respect everyone's opinion? Forgive me but I don't think so. There are opinions that are simply wrong. There are opinions that we cannot or at least that we must not respect or tolerate.
But be careful here. I'm talking about opinions but when I say opinions, I don't mean whether or not you like pizza with pineapple (that's a debate for another day); I am not referring to the feelings that other people might provoke in you. Those opinions of course have to be respected and tolerated. Rather, I am referring to those opinions about what is right and what is wrong that in a certain way direct how the individual behaves with others, and here we have to mark a difference.
You see, I think it's very important to highlight the fact that we don't fully control our feelings. It is not necessarily our fault when we like something or not; it is not rational. You may like a person as soon as you see them, for no reason; it may make you uncomfortable to see two men holding hands; You may not like a dark-skinned person sitting next to you on the subway. Those sensations, you do not control them, they are not your fault and by themselves, there's nothing wrong with them, at least, that's what I think. I mean, it would be better if they did not exist because at the end of the day they are negative feelings but there is nothing immoral about them per se.
The problem would arise in either of two scenarios: first, if you were to base your opinions or your actions on those feelings; If you were to act against the person you dislike for no reason, if you were to disrespect them or if you thought that that person does not deserve the same rights as you, just because you dislike them; If you were to think that these two men should not be allowed to hold hands, if you were to think that homosexual couples do not deserve the same rights as heterosexual couples; if you were to think that that dark-skinned person did something he shouldn't have done by sitting in an empty place on the subway; If you were to disrespect any of those people, or if you were to think their rights are or should be different in any way from yours, that would be wrong. Do you want to see an example of this? Watch Philadelphia, a movie with Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington. In the meantime, let's continue.
Let's go to the extreme. A murderer. He believes that killing is okay because humans are destroying tha planet. It's not right. You must not respect their opinion, you must oppose it. But the murderer? The murderer themself is still a human being, he continues to have rights even though they are the rights of prisoners (which exist by the way).
What I am going for, and what I want you to stay with is that a human being should always be treated with respect, anyone should be tolerated regardless of their religion, sexual orientation, skin color, political opinion, economic situation, etc. When people say that you have to be tolerant they mean that you have to tolerate people, not lactose and not ideas. Saying that all opinions must be tolerated is, for example, one of those opinions that we should not tolerate.
And when I say that we should not tolerate an opinion, I mean that we must argue, peacefully and rationally against it. Does anyone think that the death penalty is good? Discuss it. Listen. Argue against it. Explain. TALK. Always with respect for the other person and you will see how things will start to improve.
And if you've made it this far, tell me your thoughts on the subject.
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