0 Finding our Humanity

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This morning I was catching up on my morning news, sipping my first cup of green tea, watching as people were still losing their minds over the marriage of two rich and privileged people and Sir Drumpalot's fiasco (Sign the petition!!!).

I came across a post from Clutch Magazine that brought out the crazy in me.

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Is it really this easy to stand around and watch other human beings suffering? When someone, no matter who they are, bring the issue of human suffering to light, we watch the news for a minute gasp about it and turn away back into our comfortable lives.

You would think that it is because we are uncomfortable watching the suffering so it is just much easier to ignore it - but looking at the television programs that have become a staple of Prime Time, we have police dramas with the most desperate examples of human suffering and cases of degenerate cruelty and despicable injustice. So that is not it. We can watch it and TV networks actually count on our desire to see this kind of programming in order to make money.

Is it because it is real? Nah, we watch that too. Case in point, Intervention, The First 48 and whatever other shows you can think of. We love this stuff and guzzle it down like freshmen guzzling beer at their first frat party.

Maybe it is because we have an overload. Now that we are Generation Information Age (forget the X, Y and Z designations). Just take a look at these very few examples,

• Oil companies emptying their waste into fresh water of indigenous people of Nigeria and Angola, 
• The atrocities committed against Afganis and Iraqi people for access to their land (and yet gas prices keep going up!), 
• Indian waterways filled with the toxic waste and dumping of plastic trinkets from the Western World, 
• The devastation of Southern States as they grapple with floods,
• The frightening news about nuclear contamination in Japan, 
• Toxic waste dumping on the shores of Somalia.
• Child labor in the Far East.

It tires the soul, then to hear that a war is being perpetrated because of minerals in The Democratic Republic of Congo? (It behooves us all to note that there are TWO countries in Africa with "Congo" in its name).

So what does this mean?

Money talks. Bee Ess Walks

For the sake of our fellow human beings we have to speak up and talk with our wallets and demand that the companies that provide us with products for our daily lives practice fair trade and refrain from engaging in any conflict around the World that results in the degradation of any human being and risks their lives.

When issues are raised, like the conflict minerals of The DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) by the Enough Project (read article by Ryan Gosling and John Prendergast) then it is our responsibility to see what we can do about it, to do our research, find out which companies benefit from perpetual war and stop giving them our money.

"Raise Hope for Congo" 

Let us not forget the now famous words of Pastor Martin Niemöller

First they came for the communist,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.

It is not just a talking point and old news. This is the real suffering of a flesh and blood human being, who - but for pure random chance - could have been you.

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0 Have you met Phaedra yet?

You may not have heard about her yet but Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Green For All. This is a non-profit organization that promotes a clean energy economy.

Phaedra represents a new generation of African American youth activists who are looking out for the environment. As a visionary and sustainability advocate, she leads this national organization with a clear mandate of promoting the well-being of people and communities in a green economy.

The US is behind in green economy. In some parts of the country, you won't even find recycling boxes in schools and offices. Many Americans are just not thinking about what it means to recycle, reuse, and reduce. In these times of job losses, bankruptcy, or repossessions, it seems like a luxury to worry about the environment, doesn't it?

Well, it isn't.

An economy based on oil is one of the reasons that this country is falling apart. It is simply unsustainable. Coal and gas (with its fracking horrors) are no better. Short-term economic gains while poisoning water wells, fishing shores, and the air we breathe lead to long-term losses. What is the solution, then?

It may very well lie with Phaedra and other youth activists who are interested in a clean energy economy that puts people back to work and saves the environment from costly degradation. The future is bright, folks! You just gotta believe.

Check out Phaedra and others at Power Shift 2011, a youth-led conference to take on the fossil fuel industry. 10,000 young people showed up and got fired up.

Images courtesy of Blackenterprise.com The Huffington Post

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