Recently, I was told by a friend that saying slurs is okay because people do it without the intention of hurting someone. I asked them how they knew whether or not they were hurting that person. They responded with:
“It doesn’t matter. Speech does not affect people.”
After hearing that statement, my heart dropped a little in my throat. I realized why there are so many nonviolent protests at SLU. The cause of problems between two communities of people boils down to miscommunication. And then, there is an inability to talk about what the miscommunication is after arguments, rallies and outcries.
To give an example, history books are often mistaught or written with a biased perspective to give more leverage to a certain group of people. Much of the SLU Class from 2021 to 2024 has been taught about Christopher Columbus finding the Americas in high school. But there was a whole group of Native Americans that occupied the Americas years prior to Columbus’s discovery. This miseducation made a whole group of students unaware of people who still live today. We are unaware of their culture and how the actions of the American government still hurts them today.
“Misperceptions” are used to manipulate groups of people to support a cause. They perpetuate because it is hard to put away differences and understand each other’s perspective. For example, many government officials around the world go to war before understanding the effect of it at the individual’s level– because that is what war affects ultimately, simple people.
Everyday speech leads to action as well. My friend saying slurs dehumanized a whole population of people. It could lead to others thinking it is alright to repeat inhumane words.
One person can catalyze groups of people both negatively and positively. One word has a tandem of actions that that individual might not see. In college, we all should be learning to harbor the maturity to think about our words before we speak. Speech can be hurtful and trigger physical fights.
In fact, speech affects people more than physical violence at times. It cuts into your mind and stays there indefinitely. It takes years of relearning yourself, and often therapy, to seize your mental state back.
Small Words can lead to Big Actions. The way to take steps forward is to communicate, understanding the speech of two opposing sides before physical action transpires. It starts off as slurs and can lead to large groups of people getting hurt.
Ending with advice: as we mature in college, reflect. Take one minute every day to see if anything you said could have come across better. One minute to erase miscommunication and lead our generation into a more peaceful future.