The Confederate Flag and Compassion

Wwha

Confederate Flag and Compassion Robert R. Odle, Ph.D. an aspiring good citizen of the earth

… hurting people ....

My mom was a simple but wise woman.  When I was about ten, we had this conversation.  She told me to not use words that hurt people.  I asked her how would I know.  She said just ask people if what you are saying offends them or hurts them.  If it does, don’t do it.  She was talking about the word “colored” at the time.  She told me that she didn’t think it was the right word anymore, but she wasn’t sure what would be the nicest word. My mom didn’t use the word compassion, but I believe it guided much of her actions.

Hate comes in a lot of forms.  Sometimes it is blatant and violent like a gun.  Sometimes it is word.  Sometimes it is a flag.  And, my mom would say, it is not so much what the word or flag means to the one holding it, but to the one you are saying it to or showing it to.  The confederate flag has become a hateful symbol to many people.  I think I will take my mom’s advice and not own one or display one.  That would be against the values I was taught and that I believe.

which of your values guides you in this case?

By the way, my mom died more than a decade ago when she was 92. As a child, she met someone who had fought in the civil war. She told me in amazement, "he still had a lot of hate".