By Paul V. Montesino, PhD, MBA, ICCP
In case you have missed the title of this article, let me repeat it: You and I are not equal.
Of course, before I get into hot water, let me explain what I mean. I am not saying that we are or deserve to be different in the human value scale. I am not saying that I am better than you or you are worse than me either. All I say simply is that we are… yes, different.
I have two grown-up children and together they have five of their own. I have always said that I don’t want my children, and certainly not my grandchildren, to be my carbon copies. I want them to be different. I have skills and virtues that are unique to me and I want to contribute those sets to the world where and while I live. I want my children to do the same with their skills and virtues, not to offer a rehashed set of the same skills and virtues I have. This means that the world will enjoy the diversity of our differences, not the sameness and monotony of our equality.
Unfortunately, there are some in this world who not only think you are not equal to them for a different reason and translate that inequality into your being inferior. It maybe the color of your skin, the accent of the language you speak, your national origin or when that origin took place, your immigration status and why you chose to migrate, not realizing that migrating is about your destination, not your origin, your education, your religion, your gender, your sexual orientation, your economic resources, your whatever. The dictionary of inequality is full of adjectives.
The notion of the differences I am talking about is expressed in our daily contacts, our politics, our media and our decisions at the ballot box. It looks like these days America is in the hands of destructive differences and not constructive similarities. We are not willing to give others the dues as human beings that we want for ourselves, because our philosophical beliefs are too narrow, based on the perceived dangers that we believe we face by their mere presence. Instead of using every opportunity to deal with those different individuals to appreciate what their differences contribute to the quality of our lives, we waste those occasions as a chance to enrich our existence and exchange with them some of the skills and virtues we can all bring to the plate.
Of course, we are not equal, neither should we be. You and I hold a small piece of a big multi colored puzzle that combined makes for a better life. Let my differences and yours live next to each other. Who knows, mutually adopting our differences might make us better human beings and this place where we live a better world. The recent Easter celebration of Resurrection we enjoyed, was a moment of joy and rebirth. This might be a good opportunity to take advantage of it.
