Slight Rant...

I have been spoiled living in Berkeley; a place in which liberalism is a way of life. A place next door to San Francisco, a city rich with different cultures, religions, personalities, sexual orientations etc… Australia is white and I miss that diversity. This place has been a challenge for me; a challenge to explain why I am so adamant about my liberal leftist beliefs such as same sex marriage, pro choice, environmental issues etc… Sometimes I think that this debate is good for me because hell it is always good to see the other side of the coin and I am completely open to changing my own mind if I can be persuaded but most of the time the debate just makes me worried. I have been living in a Berkeley bubble which is far from perfect but the relative acceptance of people became the norm for me. Australia has jolted me out of that norm and I honestly don’t know what to do about it. Sometimes I think that everyone in the world just needs a big dose of RA classes. I mean I know that a lot of what they teach us in those classes can be seemingly pointless but it all come down to the fundamental belief that everyone is created equal and should be treated as such.

Now don’t get me wrong, most Australians are not outright racist (no more so than many Americans) but the pure ignorance here constantly frustrates me. (of course once again I could be talking about any place in the world but this is just my current experience...) Australia really is its own continent separated from the rest of the world by an ocean of literal and metaphoric proportions. Once again I don’t want to give anyone the impression that Australians are bad people or that they are cruel and heartless because they are incredibly nice, caring, generous people (ha ha there I go stereotyping) that have welcomed me graciously into their home. I guess, however that this makes it even worse in a way because why am I so privileged that they accept me into their society? The problem is that this is the case all over the world: societies that are accepting and backwards at the same time. So what can we do to increase awareness and decrease ignorance?- continue to engage in discussions and arguments about these hot button topics. And if they are educated on the topic and still have a close minded view? What then? Should I continually try to push them towards my liberal ideas or does that make me as close minded as them for not accepting their ideology?

Round and round in circles I could go… I guess for now I have to just stay true to my own beliefs and acceptance of all people while I continue to engage in these heated discussions. I have to say, however that I am looking forward to my break in a bubble when I go back to Berkeley in November :) Until then, I’ll just keep on truckin…