There is a shameless cruelty in our societies when it
comes to acknowledging other people’s suffering. Either we shy away or refuse to
acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will devalue our own
and/or it amounts to infidelity to our own cause. I submit to you, that the human atrocities are pent up frustrations and
unresolved issues that reach a boiling point and explode into massacres and
genocides. As civilized societies, we need to bring a closure to the issues
through forgiveness, apology and restoration of justice. The least we can do in
the process of healing is to know and acknowledge every one’s pain.
MikeGhouse
www.HolocaustandGenocides.com
….
Remembering the Holocaust and All Genocides
Published in Huffington post on 01/25/2013 11:31 am
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/holocaust-remembrance-and-recognizing-all-genocides_b_2547164.html
…
There is a shameless cruelty in our societies when it comes to
acknowledging other people’s suffering. Either we shy away or refuse to
acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will devalue our
own and/or it amounts to infidelity to our own cause.
Unless we reload our hearts with empathy, and feel the pain and
suffering of others, each one of us will continue to dwell in silos and
the genocides will continue to happen. As Martin Niemoller wrote in his
eternal poem, the essence of which is; first they came for communists, I
did not do a thing because I was not one of them; then they came for
Jews, and I wasn’t one, and finally when all were wiped out, they came
for me, and there was no one to defend me.
One of the most popular dialogues from a 1958 Bollywood movie “Yahudi” was, Tumhara khoon, khoon aur mera Khoon pani?
— “Your blood is blood and my blood is water? An immortal dialogue
uttered by a Jew in the film, Yehudi as it is called, when the Roman
emperor freezes when he learns that his son Marcus cheated Yehudi’s
daughter. In plain English, the inhumanity in us does not value other
people as we value ourselves.
VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DcloW-WF7l0
By nature many of us are disgustingly selfish, nothing but our own
interest matters to us. Do you recall standing in a food buffet line at a
friend’s wedding, a family or a community gathering? Someone said that
the food may be short, but yet, the guy in front of you piled up his
plate, or may be the one, knowing well that there a lot of people behind
you, and some may not get the food.
It’s Not Easy
Those who build bridges understand the experiences we have
encountering in organizing the sixth annual reflections on the Holocaust
and genocides in Dallas on Sunday, Jan. 27 at the Unity Church of
Dallas on Forest Lane. There are nearly 50 genocides in the last
century, and it is humanly impossible to talk about all of them in one
sitting, the selfish attitudes displayed by each group of people is
amazing, each one thinks his blood is blood and others blood is water
that can be ignored.
Muslims
Way back in 2006, a Muslim shouts at me in a public meeting, “Why are
you commemorating Holocaust of Jews? Why don’t you commemorate the
Holocaust of Palestinians?” I countered, all of this should be done, why
don’t you do it? He was belligerent; he was one of the loose mouths and
not a doer. Indeed, we plan to attend to every one of the atrocity in
the next few years.
Another Muslim knocked God out of his throne, and chose to declare,
“If you don’t talk about Palestinians, you are not a Muslim.” They don’t
care to read the work that is being done for both Israelis and
Palestinians. The Huffington Post has published many articles on the topic and the other work is at www.IsraelPalestineDialogue.com
Another one writes, “You are writing about the holocaust of Jews, you
forgot what Stalin did?” My instant response was, “Did you forget the
genocides of gays?” And you also forgot about the genocides of Native
Americans, African Americans over the Atlantic… the list is a long
one. Can I accuse you, that did you did not care about others?
Jews
We were criticized and asked to remove the phrase “A Muslim
initiative” from the publicity material. Instead of recognizing the
effort to build bridges, they were bent on not giving credit to Muslims
for extending the hand of understanding. Please remember, it was not the
Jews, it is the few individuals who wore the label Jews. I have known
the community closely through strong interactions and conflicts, rather
than superficial salaams and shaloms. Indeed, I have a whole book to write about how to improve Jewish Muslim relationships for a better society.
A few years ago a Jewish speaker canceled his speech at the event in
the last minute because we were addressing the Gaza massacre as one of
the seven items; he considered it anti-Israel and did not participate.
However, my Jewish friends attended the event, and called him back to
let him know that it was not about Israel, but about the human suffering
and the brutal inhumanity in all of us. Most people don’t want to face
the truth, that someone from their own tradition is capable of murdering
and massacring people.
No one should be ashamed of what fellow humans from your group do,
what you should be ashamed of is your own attitude toward another human.
Hindus
Several of my Hindu friends have jumped on me for not including the
plight of Kashmiri Pundits, they are so obsessed with their own that
others don’t matter to them. We have mentioned about the plight of
Kashmiri Pundits at least three times in five years, those who criticize
don’t come to the event, unless it is “about them.” We need to stand up
for everyone, and certainly stand up for others before we do for our
own.
Indian Muslims
A friend writes another friend’s quote, “The question was why Mike
forgot 2002 Gujarat Holocaust & Genocide that was lot bigger and
wider than 1984 Sikh Holocaust & Genocide.” I did not forget, nor
will I ever forget any genocide. In April 2002, rallies were held for
Gujarat in down town Dallas, when Shabnam Hashmi came to Dallas, she was
hosted to show the documentaries of that genocide. If the event is dear
to the people, they should express their love and commemorate it. We
will do our share; each event will take its turn.
Indians and Pakistanis
A few Pakistanis think that talking about 1971 Bangladesh genocide is
an Indian conspiracy to defame Pakistan, and they resort to attacks on
India instead of understanding the suffering of the people.
The Indians on the other hand think that talking about Sikh genocides
amounts to defaming India. “Why the hell do you want to bring this up;
it’s done with.” It is not done with, the wounds are still open.
Please remember, there is a fraction of a percent of people in each
group, whether religious, ethnic, nationalistic or racial, who tend to
ignore facts.
Let’s learn to understand the selfishness embedded in us, if we can
stand up for others, particularly for strangers, then there is a greater
self nurtured within us, making us a better human to live with peace
and tranquility. We have to stand up for women’s right and the rights of
minorities and voiceless as a part of securing the future. Each one of
us has to do our share of good to the world around us, for our own good
at the end. We have to stand up for others, that is the right thing to
do.
Standing in line (food or anything) to wait for your turn is one of
the most human things to do. It is a sign of acceptance of equal rights
of others, and others needs as much as yours. We have a list of about 50
genocides, and each year we will focus on a few. More than likely, you
will find yourselves guilty of not listening or paying attention to
other’s tragedy but your own. Slap yourselves, if you do not think
other’s plight is not as important as your own.
Every year we have reflected on our failings, massacres, genocides
and the Holocaust. This year, we will focus on the Sikh genocide of
1984. Dr. Amarjit Singh, will deliver the key note address on the topic.
Mr. Hasan Mahmud will share about the Bangladesh Genocide of 1971, Dr.
Petra Weldes will talk about the effects of stereotyping on the
societies, and Kelly Obazee will reflect on current massacres around the
world. I will speak about the Holocaust, our anchor event, and the
need to take a stand against oppression of others.
Please visit www.HolocaustandGenocides.com
for details, the event is an initiative of the Sikh Gurdwaras of North
Texas, Foundation for Pluralism and World Muslim Congress.
I submit to you, that the human atrocities are pent up frustrations
and unresolved issues that reach a boiling point and explode into
massacres and genocides. As civilized societies, we need to bring a
closure to the issues through forgiveness, apology and restoration of
justice. The least we can do in the process of healing is to know and
acknowledge every one’s pain.
Follow Mike Ghouse on Twitter:
www.twitter.com/MikeGhouse
———-
Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a
writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work
place and standing up for
others as an activist. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. Mike has a
strong presence on national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a
frequent guest on Sean
Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he
contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News, fortnightly
at Huffington post, and
several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes everything you
want to know about him.