My thoughts for tomorrow: Speak only if it improves upon the silence.
Tomorrow is not the day for identifying hatemongers. In outraging over “look X is saying Y,” you will only give further publicity to their hateful views. Instead, tweet happy things. And pray there’s no violence. Don’t add to the noise.
If you can, help change the conversation. Let’s toot and tweet and Facebook all day about the state of the economy.
If you see any incitement to violence, any trouble in your area, any hate speech you think needs to be addressed, call the cops. Record it for evidence. But don’t tweet it. Don’t spread it on WhatsApp or Facebook or Instagram or SMS or by word of mouth.
If you think any piece of information is unverified, don’t pass it on to others, not even in private. Don’t become a vehicle of rumourmongering. You are smarter than that.
I was 8 years old when the mosque fell. My uncle had gone for the kar sewa. I went to a fancy school in Lucknow. It was the only time when unexpected holidays were not a happy occasion. There was uncertainty because we didn’t know when would school re-open.
We had many Muslim classmates and we are all friends with each other. Religion never, never came in the way. This was Lucknow. But now there was an awkwardness in the air. I can’t forget the name of the Bengali class teacher, Mrs Sen.
As school re-opened, she cut through the awakwardness in 2 minutes. “My son asked me do you support temple or mosque? I said shut up, no temple no mosque! Stop the nonsense!” And we carried about our classes like nothing had happened.
The best revenge upon hate and violent is to assert our everyday dignity, is to carry on about our lives, no matter with how heavy a heart, as though nothing had happened. Like healing from the death of a loved one, or recovering from a bad break-up.
