as small as a world and as large as alone

11:06am April 11, 2014

matociquala:

It’s all well and good to say we’re not going to give people “cookies” for behaving decently, and please don’t think I’m saying it’s anyone’s job and calling to go around praising men for showing a crumb of empathy and compassion—or even just recognition—to women, or straight folks to queer folks, or cis folks to trans folks, or white folks to people of color, or able folks to those with special needs. 

But, conversely, let’s also remember something that anybody who has socialized an animal or a child knows: if you only pay attention to bad behavior, pretty soon bad behavior is all you’re going to get.

We reward the behavior we want to see.

And while we’re at it, let’s each look at the problems we have our own selves with acknowledging the contributions of members of disenfranchised groups.

We all know the phenomenon where, when a woman says something (be it about equality or something else), it falls under the radar—but let a man say the same thing, and it’s repeated ten thousand times. 

Whatever it is, it’s always more valid if a man says it, if a white person says it, if a straight person says it, if a cis person says it, if an able person says it.

Let’s share the wealth and credit around, shall we? It’s probably not actually possible to acknowledge everyone’s efforts. But it’s possible to try.

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