Be Defined By What You Love, Not By What You Hate.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Let’s do a simple thought experiment. Think about how you would change the world, in what you believe in, and what drives you. Reduce those thoughts to simple statements, two or three of them. Now consider how many of these statements are based on things you hate, and how many are based on things you love. Which wins?

We tend to define our attitude based on what we hate, yet this does very little to actually create a better world. Hating racism, hating misogyny, or hating homophobia does not mean you support equality. You are promoting or providing a better world. It just means you think these things are wrong. It might seem like an issue of syntaxis, but it’s a mayor issue of syntaxis.

When you tell someone that what they are doing is wrong, their reaction is to lock up. They turn into rebellious teenagers, ignoring if it’s wrong or right, and just try to prove they can win. We see this in every aspect of society, as people start taking absurd stands. Yet these stands are not that absurd when you consider why they came about, as a rebellion of being told they are wrong.

Stop telling people that what they are doing is wrong. Instead tell them how they can do better. What they are doing wrong will go away as a result. Stop trying to fight racism, but rather make people understand that all races are equal. Stop trying to get rid of misogyny or misandry, but rather talk about gender equality. Educate people in acceptance of different sexual orientations, and not just in tolerance. Strive for a better world, not one with fewer wrongs.