On Censorship

Hey y’all, I just wanted to come on here to hit y’all with a huge public service announcement because I am extremely PEEVED.

Y’all need to know that in most instances CENSORSHIP IS COUNTERPRODUCTIVE to social harmony. Yes, there are times when censorship may be necessary, such as when involving hateful or threatening behavior or when dealing with adult material in the presence of young children. However, censorship should not be employed just because there are varying opinions and beliefs present. In fact, the act of censoring someone simply due to a difference in opinion and/or belief only exacerbates the divisions. People should be mature enough to not only co-exist with others carrying varying ideas, but should also be able to appreciate and value one another despite differences. Shutting down the opportunity for them to discuss or even acknowledge their differences only strengthens theirs divisions.

I say all this because I attempted to upload my On Underdog Mentality blog post on Vocal Media, and they denied it because they the “content makes direct or indirect assertions or implications about personal attributes and/or beliefs.” AKA: the post got denied because it mentioned my faith. I would understand if I was saying something hateful or threatening about other religions, but I mentioned my faith, but to be honest, there was so many other important pieces of advice in that post which applied to EVERYONE regardless of their beliefs.

When speaking about these types of things, I always use this example: there was a friend of mine who was an atheist was going through a really tough time. He expressed on Facebook (I don’t know why…y’all please don’t be —well that’s another post for another day) about his troubles. Naturally people jumped to wish him well in the comments section. One particular lady told him she would be praying for him. He snapped on her! He was so angry because he felt like that was offensive language to use towards an atheist. I thought his reaction was so unwarranted because the lady’s intentions were pure regardless of her methods of conveying said intention. She was simply wishing him well in the language she knew best, and he allowed his differences to blind and block him from receiving those wishes.

Its just like if you were about to eat a delicious meal, and someone who speaks French says to you “bon appétit!” Are you going to refuse to eat and enjoy your meal because they did not say it in the dialect you adhere to? If you did decide to react that way, the reality is that it’d be you who would have lost out on a delicious meal—not them. It would be different if the French speaker was saying rude and absurd things about your native tongue, or trying to convince you why their tongue was superior. But if they were simply trying to convey a messages in the language that speaks to them, there should be no issues. You still should be able to receive things (especially that which is to your benefit) from people who are different from you. Just like if I say “Merry Christmas” to someone who is Jewish, for example, that doesn’t mean I am saying “F*** Hanukkah,” it merely means I am wishing you a happy season and I am saying it in the language I know best.

The point I am trying to make is that censoring others because they see the world differently than you, is only doing a disservice to yourself. You will end up blocking well wishes, sound advice, or innovative ideas simply because the delivery didn’t stroke your ego by being conveyed in a language that you are comfortable with. You are only hurting yourself with that behavior.

We as people need to be even more open minded to that which we do not know, are familiar with or agree with because that is exactly what is going to stretch our capacity for knowledge, understanding, compassion and most importantly our capacity for love. And besides, if we only speak to people who agree with us, or see the world exactly how we see it….then honestly, what’s the point??