Amidst the tyranny among us, let us not forget the terrible toll that SARS-COV-2 is having on the world and the United States. Click on the link for the most current data and information.
Lesson 12: Make Eye Contact and Small Talk
“This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and understand whom you should and should not trust. If we enter a culture of denunciation, you will want to know the psychological landscape of your daily life.”
Timothy Snyder, “On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century,” 2017
Since “On Tyranny” was written in 2017, it was pre-COVID. Dr. Snyder’s lesson about reaching out and breaking social barriers is even more challenging given that we are not making this kind of social contact due to the epidemieological constraints of the Coronavirus.
Yet, the need to reach out and connect with, talk to, shake hands with, hug and kiss are the same as they were pre-COVID. As we emerge from the necessary and effective COVID restrictions, this need to connect with those that we love and cherish and especially those that we might not have the same fond feelings for, will become more important than ever.
Being largely limited to non-physical social contact has made it possible for people with bad intentions to turn our virtual internet environment into a medium for building social barriers instead of breaking down social barriers. Resisting these forces requires constant vigilance, skepticism, questioning and conversation with people you know and sometimes it might require you to reach out to people you don’t know. It is the job of each of us to break down the barriers between us and build connections rooted in common knowledge and openness to reason and Truth.
Dr. Snyder reminds us that “you might not be sure, today or tomorrow, who feels threatened in the United States. A smile, a handshake or a word of greeting–banal gestures in a normal situation–took on great significance.”
He is referring to the victims of tyrannical repression in 1920’s Italy, Nazi Germany of the 1930’s, the 1937-38 “Great Terror” in the Soviet Union and Communist eastern Europe in the 1940’s and ’50’s.
He is also referring to the United States of today. The message here is that simple gestures mean the world to the oppressed. Knowing that someone stands with them in their times of trial means everything to them. Hope remains alive and Truth is still present. And, as Snyder says, why stop at the oppressed? When the opportunity is right and physical contact is once again prudent, engage others with eye contact, small talk and a handshake. You may not know the impact that your gesture has on someone, but you can be sure that the act of affirming them is a good thing for the individual involved and the whole of society.
I see you, Bruce! Good one.