A Meditation on Pronouns and Their Power to Save or Destroy the Human Race

If only society could see I am a “one,” not an “all” and so are you.

I have no age. I am not white. I am not female. I am only a pronoun. I am “me.”

To me, you are not a color or a race or a religion. You also have no age or no gender. You are also only a pronoun. You are “you.”

Why?

I will not become a party to the pronoun “blame game” that has permeated society. A game that thrives on the pronoun “all.” A game that groups people based on a certain set of character traits that they assume is inherent in each of its members.

Because I believe one of the most profound sources of degeneration and destruction in this world is done by prescribing a label to groups of people, ignoring the individuals that comprise the group.

I refuse to do this.

Seeing others do it drives me to madness.

And no one seems to see the hypocrisy apparent in this “sorting hat” of human beings.

If I blame all men for my oppression, does that mean men can rightly blame me when they state that all women use their sexuality to make their way forward in life?

If I make individuals into an “all,” does that not mean that they can make me into an “all” as well?

I will not allow these individuals’ denial of my individuality to provoke a similar response in me.

Many may refuse to see my individuality, but I will counter their measures by refusing not to see others’.

I will not blame all men for the hurdles in my life. For each man that has shown prejudice or seen me as inferior, another man has shown me kindness and recognized my power and strength.

I will not blame all people of color for scorning me unfairly because of my skin color or the actions of my ancestors. For each person of color that has turned me away due to the history of my race, another person of color has loved me, comforted me, and found the beauty that lies beneath the flesh.

I will not blame all of the younger generation for the deterioration of society. For each young adult that uses his powers to crucify and condemn others, another young adult works selflessly to make the world a better place.

I will not blame groups. I will only blame individuals. I will blame “one,” not “all.”

Because I am another pronoun. “One.” And so are you.

I am not a group. I am a pronoun capable of great good and of great evil. And so are you.

So see me. Not my race. Not my age. Not my genitalia.

See me only based on my unique virtues or my unique sins. And I promise to see you the same way.

I will only judge you as your own unique pronoun.

I will judge you based on how you treat those in need of physical or emotional nourishment. I will judge you based on whether you have added to the beauty of life or contributed to the misery of the universe. I will judge you based on whether or not you unfairly judge me — by my color, my sex, on any other biological trait imbued by my DNA.

And please, feel feel to judge me in this way as well.

If and only if the world can do this, can punishment be fairly doled out and justice truly be just.

Friedrich Nietzsche said, “In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs, it is the rule.”

Today, you and I, separate pronouns, separate individuals, can choose to be part of the insanity or part of the solution.

Let’s make the right choice.