Have we really become so unempathetic as a society that the act of putting yourself in others’ shoes is unbelievable to the point that people assume you must be part of the group you’re defending? So I often see people being unfairly discriminatory and mean to certain types, attributes or qualities of people, which I know some would be offended and hurt by. But whenever I stick up for them, I get comments like this: “Tell me you’re x without telling me you’re x”. “F*** off, x”. A good example is gay people or trans people. I get heavily criticised for defending them and people immediately assume that I’m gay or trans just because I’m expressing that I empathise with how they’re treated in society and think people should be kinder toward them. There are lots of other examples but I’m worried I’ll be antagonised here just by saying them, so I picked some slightly more socially acceptable ones (yes there are some far less socially acceptable things than LGBT these days, in my experience, despite the rampant LGBTphobia).

  • forty2@lemmy.world
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    11 months ago

    I think it stands to reason that on particular levels you’re aligning yourself with “them”. But… that’s the whole point of empathy…its only when you see pieces of yourself in others that you can empathize with their existence or experience.

    I guess its the human tragedy…we’re all so much alike in our struggles, it’s just the theatres that are different. But for some, that difference is enough to obscure the mirror and people see a monster where its just a reflection.