BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE IN THE WORLD
Mahatma Gandhi
Social injustice. Civil unrest. Unemployment. Inability to travel to see friends and loved ones. It is 2020 and we are witnessing a tremendous shock to society …. again.
The shock to our cities and countries is bad enough. The billions of individual shocks to businesses, employees, workers, and families across this world have been tragic and are disheartening. The shocks especially to the youngest among us are absolutely frightening for them. How do I know? Because this is what the world looked like from my 10-year old the eyes.
In 1968, I lived in Memphis, Tennessee as a 10-year old when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis. I watched scared as the news showed downtown Memphis burning. From the front porch of my house, I saw a military vehicle with soldiers going down my street. Only two months later, I watched scared as the news showed Bobby Kennedy laying shot on a hotel floor, dying only moments after he celebrated his victory in the California Democratic presidential primary. I watched scared as the news covered the riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, including the unforgettable scene at the Hilton Hotel. During the summer of 1968, my family moved to a small southern U.S. city where public school desegregation was undertaken two years after we arrived. I watched scared as riots erupted at my JUNIOR high school to which the police were called.
Throughout 1967 when I was 9 years old, every day I followed news of a war in Vietnam, until my older cousin was killed late in the year outside Saigon. All these years later I still have the newspaper clipping announcing his death in a binder I made over that Christmas holiday after his death. I am confident that some of you have seen things that I cannot even imagine.
Was it worse then? In some ways, maybe; however, my then-10-year old eyes certainly did not see a pandemic killing potentially millions of people around the world.
After those convulsant events, we heard people say “never again” many times. Yet, here we are…. again. Today, the emotions of our families, our friends and our children are legitimate and very appropriate to what is happening. Let’s mean it this time when we say: “never again”.
So how to start? In many ways, it can be easy. If we can join even one of the many thousands of groups focused on helping others, so much will be accomplished for each other - including particularly for our young watching us now. Just think what could happen with, potentially, billions of people joining each other worldwide.
My law firm, Barton LLP, is a very special law firm – just like so many other Primerus firms. We Primerus firms are special both in our legal practice but also in our commitment to assist under-represented and under-resourced groups and communities. For those who want to help change our world, join with us at Barton in some of our groups or join instead with one of the several hundred other Primerus firms supporting thousands of groups literally across the globe. We Primerus firms can do so much to make our communities stronger, more interactive, and closer.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: Only love can do that.” Several years ago, I heard a wonderful expression so appropriate to where we are now: “Change your thinking – Change the world”. Let’s change our thinking and change the world for the better – together.