11/08/2005
Dehumanization in practice
I notice more and more that the humanism of Levinas can very well be applied to intercultural contacts, and in a very direct and concrete way. I would like to post here three examples of discussions from Orkut:
1. Assimilation and tolerance
2. Dehumanization by Orkuters
3. Islam and generalizations
All three discussions show a process of dehumanization of foreigners, either because of a "totalitarian" state (the way Levinas defines "totalitarian") that enforces assimilation, or as Orkuters who dehumanize the "enemy", the group opposed to their own group that they consider to be very bad, or because somebody hates the Islam and doesn't distinguish between terrorists and peaceful Muslims.
To the people in all the three situations, Levinas would say something like:
Stop totalizing / dehumanizing the stranger / totally other person. We are all different but we are all equal as humans. Don't force people to become the same as you. Stop calling people animals or monsters, human beings are never monsters, don't exagerate it because of your hate. Don't generalize about a whole religion, a whole culture or race. Be precise: what kind of ideas or actions do you criticize, don't disapprove of a whole religion when only a small part of it is bad.
I end this post with two songs of Lucky Dube, a South-African reggea singer with simple but strong texts against racism:
Together as one
In my whole life,
My whole life
I've got a dream
Too many people
Hate Apartheid
Why do you like it?
The cats and the dogs
Have forgiven each other
What is wrong with us
All those years
Fighting each other
But no solution
Hey you Rasta man
Hey European, Indian man
We've got to come together as one
(Not forgetting the Japanese)
Breaking those barriers
All over the world
Was not an easy thing
Yesterday your mouth was shut yeah
Couldn't make a sound boy
But it' s such a good feeling today
When I can hear them from
Across the ocean singing this song
That the whole world should be singing
All the time
"We're different colours – one people"
Hey you government
Hey you politician
Never try to separate the people
They were created in the image of God
And who are you to separate them
The Bible says, He made man in His image
But it didn't say: black or white
Look at me you see BLACK
I look at you I see WHITE
Now is the time to kick that away
And join me in my song:
"We're different colours – one people"
