The definition of solidarity is the unification of people of a certain class or group that produces or is based on a community of interests, objectives, and standards. Of course, solidarity is of utmost importance when trying to tackle issues. I think that most people understand this...but we run into problems when we are trying to address big issues that are accompanied by an array of opinions, especially on the national and global scale.
If solidarity was easy to achieve, then the suffering of many would be sacrificed. However, how do you agree on a universal good? How can so many people agree on one specific solution to a problem? One person that has made a huge impact on my understanding of how people perceive other people is Harvey Milk. In the movie Milk the main character warrior prince Harvey Milk makes a point that all of his helpers and followers had to call their families and friends and come right now and tell them they were gay. Does this sound a little harsh and too confrontational? Yeah, it does because it can be a sensitive subject. However, Milk stresses that the people who are opposed to equal rights most likely don't even know that they know and respect the very people they are fighting. If you are able to accept and love a person simply for who they are, you should be able to accept and love all of them and their entire being.
That being said, I believe that it is important to encounter as many people as you can, talk to as many people as you can, and try to put yourself into however many different shapes and sizes of shoes as you can. That way, you can get a better and well-rounded view of how things probably should be. And then, if everyone could be sensitive to other people's conditions, maybe a more wholesome solidarity could be achieved.
I'm not sure if any of this really even made sense. The gist of it is that I think that it is difficult to achieve solidarity; but if it is important and imminent enough, then solidarity can be accomplished and real change can be actualized. It is easiest to live in solidarity on a smaller scale...so why not flourish in it whenever possible?
If solidarity was easy to achieve, then the suffering of many would be sacrificed. However, how do you agree on a universal good? How can so many people agree on one specific solution to a problem? One person that has made a huge impact on my understanding of how people perceive other people is Harvey Milk. In the movie Milk the main character warrior prince Harvey Milk makes a point that all of his helpers and followers had to call their families and friends and come right now and tell them they were gay. Does this sound a little harsh and too confrontational? Yeah, it does because it can be a sensitive subject. However, Milk stresses that the people who are opposed to equal rights most likely don't even know that they know and respect the very people they are fighting. If you are able to accept and love a person simply for who they are, you should be able to accept and love all of them and their entire being.
That being said, I believe that it is important to encounter as many people as you can, talk to as many people as you can, and try to put yourself into however many different shapes and sizes of shoes as you can. That way, you can get a better and well-rounded view of how things probably should be. And then, if everyone could be sensitive to other people's conditions, maybe a more wholesome solidarity could be achieved.
I'm not sure if any of this really even made sense. The gist of it is that I think that it is difficult to achieve solidarity; but if it is important and imminent enough, then solidarity can be accomplished and real change can be actualized. It is easiest to live in solidarity on a smaller scale...so why not flourish in it whenever possible?
