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Responsible citizenship . . . Tolerant time travel

As citizens, it is our responsibility to travel through time by pushing aside intolerance today.

Responsible citizenship . . . Tolerant time travel

Kyle Cochran ’13 is a marketing graduate from Fort Worth. He is working with the TCU Office of Admission. (Photography by Carolyn Cruz)

Responsible citizenship . . . Tolerant time travel

As citizens, it is our responsibility to travel through time by pushing aside intolerance today.

Whether as racism, sexism, discrimination, or anything else, the effects of intolerance in our society are rooted in history long ago. In years past, Jews were enslaved, women couldn’t vote, and blacks attended different schools. These and other groups of people are still mistreated today, but the issue has certainly gotten better over time. Over time.

Time seems to be the one factor that prevents all groups of people from being fully accepted in society. Sure, radical movements take place such as amendments or protests, but what happens in between? Time passes and people gradually learn how to look past their differences.

We often hear intolerant words from parents or grandparents and describe them as “generational,” effortlessly pushing them aside, confident that our generation is doing better and that the next generation will do even better than us. However, why are we waiting for the next generation? Why are we okay with waiting for things to gradually get better over time?

As citizens, it is our responsibility to travel through time by pushing aside intolerance today. This means going beyond watching one’s language or widening one’s peer group; it means fundamentally changing the approach that we have towards other groups of people. This process will be easy for some and it is their job to lead the change for others who will find it more difficult, if not entirely undesired. However challenging this may be, instead waiting around for time to pass will be, simply put, too late.

Next essay: Megan Davidson – Quilting the balance: Integrating all the pieces into the whole
TEDx at TCU – “What does responsible citizenship look like?”

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