Stand for something

An appreciation for the historical stand against oppression

By: Alisha Stahl

Posted: 2/24/10

February, being black history month, led me to think about morals. Mine and other people's too. What do we believe in? What would we surrender ourselves for? What makes us feel so strongly in agreement of or in opposition of something; anything?

Consider Rosa Parks, the woman who refused to move to the back of the bus. Why did she do that? Was it because she had a long, hard day and hadn't the strength to carry herself the few rows back? I don't think so.

I believe she was tired. Tired of the hypocrisy of the world she found herself living in, so she made a stand. Or a sit rather. She knew what she was asked to do was wrong and would tolerate it no longer. Because of this, she became a national heroine. This however, did not come without sacrifices.

There are amazing stories scattered throughout history, which define the human race. Yes, there are horrific tragedies mixed in among them, but when the wrong is righted or opposed, there is something so mindboggling, something so compelling, majestic even, that the only suitable thing to do is stare at it with speechless appreciation and gratitude and think, "Finally".

Just wonder if Rosa Parks had obliged that bus driver, or if Martin Luther King, Jr. stopped preaching the first time his life was threatened, or Nelson Mandela, or Harriet Beecher Stowe, or the countless others. I'm not just talking about individuals, but also groups of people who enacted events that made a difference. Stonewall. The Declaration of Independence. What if they hadn't spoken or acted out? How would this world, its people, be different? Would we still be here? All of us? Would we still have our friends? Would they be the same? Would we be the same?

If there is one thing we must learn, it is that we have got to understand the past, or else we are doomed to repeat it. The whole point of living is to grow. Challenge things if you don't believe them. Question something if you think it is wrong. Don't mindlessly accept whatever somebody tells you. Stand up for those who can not or are unwilling to stand up for themselves. We are only as strong as our weakest link. We are all unique and we each have something to offer. Our differences do make us stronger.

What I'm trying to get at is that we need to have morals. We need to have that one thing that forces us to act, speak out, stand up and scream to the world. We need to have desire to better the world. We need to have compassion and hope. We need to sort out what is right and what is wrong. We need people who can motivate others. But above all, we need to know ourselves and what we consider worthy of our lives.