"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only"
I've quoted the above from Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities - a masterpiece of sorrow, happiness, sacrifice, oppression and the essence of humanity. It chronicles the 18th Century French Revolution with stories revolving around Paris and London but that opening passage is surreally timeless and after the events in Paris on Friday evening it's meaning is as relevant as it has ever been.
If you're living in Europe you know all about what happened in Paris. You know the fear and uncertainty that followed in the hours afterward. You know the shock and outrage that has poured forth since from all corners of the world. It was a horrible and unholy attack on civilians resulting in mass death and destruction and our hearts go out to those directly and indirectly affected.
In the aftermath I noticed a considerable amount of energy on social media directed at raising awareness of other recent atrocities, for example the bombing in Beirut which saw 43 people killed and scores more wounded. All of a sudden my Facebook newsfeed was overtaken by people saying don't forget this place or that place and sharing photos of candles replacing the 'i' in various city names all with the general theme that Parisians are not the only ones who are suffering. Saturday became a very dark day as the recent troubles of the world - seemingly caused by ISIS - were all brought out all at once and thrust into everyone's view. It was sad to see but understandable as people sought to remind the Western world that this conflict has been somewhat hidden away 'over there' and has in actuality been going on for quite some time.
However, in some quarters this awareness activity rapidly descended into finger pointing and divisive activity as some people sought to use the understandably extensive media coverage as evidence of institutional racism and western-centricity amongst media outlets and politicians. Others questioned why Facebook turned on its' safety check feature for Paris and not anywhere else and enabled temporary profile photos of the Tricolore but not the Lebanese, Iranian, Syrian or Palestinian flags despite the fact that it was the first time it had been used for a non-natural disaster. Others sought to use the atrocity as a reason to clamp down on refugees fleeing the exact kind of violence that Paris just went through. Others sought to further their prejudices and shift blame onto Muslims regardless of the fact that the Muslims are also being attacked by ISIS.
What was unwittingly happening was the exact purpose of the Paris and other attacks - to divide and breed distrust amongst communities that were previously somewhat cohesive and united. To break down our sense of security and positive disposition towards others and turn it into a sense of fear and hostility. To cause terror.
Pointing fingers and questioning every little detail while things are still settling down and confusion, fear and anger are reigning is playing right into their hands and is the quickest way to break down trust and positive feeling amongst people and turn them against one another. Alienation and ostracism of a minority will make even the most mentally strong person feel some antipathy towards the majority but it's fundamental in the human condition that most people are fragile.
The way out of this darkness is to unite and be strong together. The people to blame are not your neighbours or the man running the corner shop or the young woman in a scarf trying to catch the bus and getting on with her daily life. The people to be angry with are not the engineers at Facebook or the refugees seeking a life free from violence. Most people are just like you and just want to get along and live their life without worry and without causing mayhem and madness. It's imperative that you realise this and live your life with compassion and mercy towards those who are with you.
I'm going to leave you with Aragorn's speech at the Black Gate (Tolkien's Lord of the Rings) where he urges unity, trust and friendship amongst the assortment of men, dwarves and elves that have gathered to fight those that would do them harm even in the face of certain defeat.
I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me! A day may come when the courage of men fails! But it is not this day! A day may come when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship! But it is not this day! An hour of wolves and shattered shields when the age of men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand! Men of the World*!
*I've changed the last word "West" to "World"!
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