The June 17 My Turn about the “toxic effect of leftist ideology” got me thinking about the toxic effect of the language we use to talk, think, and write about those with whom we disagree. That language has come to deepen and reinforce the divide that has been carved into a gulf between Americans who hold differing viewpoints. That column used phrases such as “leftist radicals” “left’s fanatical commitment” and “radical leftists” to describe people and actions with whom the author disagrees. The writer quotes “Hate releases toxic levels of cortisol which causes brain damage, and makes people susceptible to sickness and disease.” This is true.
Hate begins when we fail to be able to have civil discussions with and about those with whom we disagree. It becomes easier to hate someone when you identify that person solely by a belief, thought, or practice (that you disagree with), rather than as a human being or a fellow citizen with a belief, thought, or practice (that you disagree with). It becomes even easier when you lump everyone with that belief, thought, or practice into a group and then give them a label; easier still when you view that label as a pejorative. (I still think of “left” and “liberal” as adjectives. But I am aware that for many, they are terms loaded with connotation.)
Surely the first step in any war is dehumanizing the enemy. Once you no longer view someone as human, well, then … all bets are off.
I am a human being, a good citizen, a community-minded activist and volunteer, a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter, and a friend who has liberal and progressive views on many things. I am not a “leftist radical.” The author of the My Turn wants to bring back Donald Trump and champion various policies that I may not agree with as a way to address racial disparity. She does not wish to be labeled a “racist” or “fascist.” That’s fair. And it would help enormously, if we all begin to address those with whom we disagree as Americans, fellow citizens, neighbors, and human beings who have different life experiences and different viewpoints, and not throw them into a group and label them as some sort of shorthand that denotes “enemy.”
Toxic language has a toxic effect. Perhaps we can simply learn to say, “I disagree with the way you would like to solve that problem and here’s my idea.” Perhaps we can agree that we both want to solve the problem without slamming those with whom we disagree. I worry about our ability as a nation to move forward if we can’t first begin to talk with and about one another with respect — even when we disagree.
Eve Brown-Waite lives in Gill.