Social Media, these sacred thoughts

I recently saw this image on Facebook, one of but many posted by people who cry out, “All human lives matter!” or “We all bleed the same!” or “All lives matter – Jesus died for us all!” Yes, all lives matter to God. Yes, the ground is level at the foot of the cross. Yes, we all bleed the same. But now is not the time to ‘like and share’ these theological platitudes. This is not a theological discussion – this is a social discussion.

The problem with this image I saw on Facebook is that it blatantly ignores the voices that are crying out to be heard right now. Look closely – this image doesn’t mention black lives. It mentions Indian lives. And White lives. And Blue lives. But Black lives? Apparently they can be ignored. Sharing this image perpetuates the idea that black lives don’t matter in a time when they are desperately calling out. If you’ve shared this image (or something similar), your racism stands out more than you ever thought possible. If you can’t share an image that only says black lives matter – if you can’t share an image that even includes that line – then you don’t believe that all lives matter. Sharing an image like this says that you believe all lives matter except black lives.

Now, you might say something like: “Black lives are included in the ‘Minority lives matter’ line in the image!” But that still doesn’t make things better. You’re saying that you want to say black lives matter, but you don’t want to upset your friends or family or whoever else might see it. And yet you want them to think that you’re a good, full-spectrum-loving person, so you settled on this image. But it’s a feeble middle-ground to land on – you’re trying to save face with family and friends when an entire race of people is struggling to breathe.

Sharing this image – and others like it – is done with good intentions (and there are roads paved with good intentions), but these images ignore the reality of the situation. Yes, all lives matter. But right now, all lives are not being treated well. All lives are not being treated equally. While some of us are able to sit on mountains of power and privilege as we post simple images to make ourselves feel good, there are black lives that continue to be abused and murdered in the valleys of oppression. A black man was murdered in front of us all and we watched, shrugged our shoulders, and hit ‘share’ on a damned meme.

Look, I’m guilty, too. While I haven’t shared an ‘All lives matter’ image, neither have I shared a ‘black lives matter’ image. I haven’t been vocal in making it known that I believe that black lives matter – I have been silent, and my silence makes me just as guilty as those who share these images. I am complicit in not using my voice to make my feelings known because I, too, have feared retribution from family and friends. But at this point, it no longer matters: I must stand with the oppressed and face the retribution from family and friends.

Black lives matter.
I say it because I am called to speak and stand with the oppressed.

Black lives matter.
I say it because I am called to stand against injustice.

Black lives matter.
I say it because I am called to correct error.

Black lives matter.
I say it because I believe it.
May it be so. Dear God, may it be so.

much love. sheth.

I am not a good user of Facebook. I don’t often update my photos, and when I do I usually delete the old photo. I don’t change my status – lately it’s just been links to my blog. I rarely ‘like’ someone’s posts and I even more rarely comment on them. I don’t send friend requests, I don’t click on ads, I don’t follow social media stars, and I rarely join groups. I am the poster-child for poor social media presence.

My lack of use is partially because I don’t really care to do any of it, and part of it is because I don’t see the point in it – especially with commenting. I am amazed at the number of people who choose to comment on Facebook posts and it intrigues me when a comment is made on a post that has zero connection to the commenter. When I’m scrolling through Facebook I may see a picture and think, Ha! That is true! or Well, that’s completely false. Rarely do I stop, pull up my keyboard, and go to town on the various points as to why it’s a lie or why it made me laugh.

A few months back a friend of mine posted about how he was feeling diminished as a person and people still treated him horribly even though he has just as many rights as the next individual. Because it’s just a thing I do, I wanted to uplift and encourage him, so I offered words of hope and reminded him that he is valued and cherished.

As with most Facebook postings, someone commented on my comment and said that my words weren’t necessary because our mutual friend already knew these things. This person went on to say that it was a larger issue and work needed to be done to fix the problems that perpetuate people’s thinking about race, culture, and ethnicity. They tried to engage me several times to discuss their points and why I was incorrect.

I just wanted to be nice to my friend.

While I wanted to offer some encouragement, both me and my comment were both mowed down by calls against systemic racism and perpetual injustices. While yes, we do need to stand up against these things, I know that I wasn’t wrong in my initial comment. My friend needed to be reminded of who he is and that he is valued.

There are a few things I’m taking away from this situation:

I need to recognize and acknowledge that some people are going to want to argue, no matter what. They’re always going to be holding up the banners against injustice, against tyranny, against systemic issues, no matter the context or discussion. We need those people in this world and I need to help those people use their skills in real-life communications.
I have a valuable part in this work. While I am not the up-front talker, I can be the behind-the-scenes person who supports others and I’m just as valuable as they are. I don’t have to march, protest, or argue all the time – especially if it’s not what I’m good at. But I should do what I can to help people who are good at those things.
Words of encouragement are always – always – helpful and necessary.

It’s easy to get on social media to call out wrongs and argue away at the issues. It’s much more difficult to hold our tongues and scroll on by. I think it would benefit us all if we did the latter, and I think it would be even better if we chose to have those discussions in person. May God give us patience with one another, may we know when to speak up, and above all else, may we always love and encourage one another.

much love. sheth.