In my College Success course, some of the things we talk about include diversity and conflict resolution, and I often show a picture of the pyramid of hate:
Whenever I have shown it, I have referenced Germany 1933-1945, because it has been a textbook case of how this can happen - how we get to genocide if we don't stop to think. It all starts with bias - stereotypes, jokes, and insensitive remarks. This bias is used to justify individual acts of prejudice, such as bullying, name-calling, and dehumanization, which in turn leads to discrimination. Once you are at that level, the step to violence isn't that big, and neither is the next step towards genocide.
But this all boils down to what I like to refer to as The Other. The Other isn't like you. He may have a different sexual orientation. She may have a different skin color. He may have a different religion. She may be of a different socioeconomic status. Whatever characteristic it is, The Other is different. Different from you and me. And once you start identifying The Other, it is easier to identify who you are as well, because at least you aren't The Other. Because that would be bad. Really bad. Because we hate The Other.
That's a big word. Hate. But man, is it a motivator. A driving force. But nothing unites us more than a shared enemy, and we do love to hate our enemies. I still remember coming into the locker room getting ready for swimming lessons with my oldest daughter, overhearing a conversation between two young guys, barely out of high school, talking about how they couldn't wait to get to Iraq to kill some "towelheads." And that's what happen when you hate so much - you dehumanize. Because a "towelhead" is not a human being. That is just a target. Someone to hate. This was in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, and a lot of people really hated then. And people still really hate.
It is so easy to give in to hatred. It is easy to start thinking about people as less than - and eventually as less than human. And these days I am worried because that is what I see. I see value of human life that is in decline. Because that is the only way I can make sense of a man taking out his gun and shoot and kill a recent high school graduate after being cut off. But I also see hatred and dehumanization. I see it in every terrorist attack. Including the one last weekend where a white supremacist drove his car into a crowd of protesters. And all of this scares me.
And then I remembered a song to go along with this feeling.
In 1990, Norwegian band Raga Rockers released the album Rock'N'Roll Party, an album I never really cared that much for. However, there was one song that really hit a nerve, and it is becoming more and more relevant again. The song is Noen Å Hate - or Someone To Hate. The lyrics are as follows (my loose translation):
That guy is nothing like you
Hurry up and get him
It's just as good as sex
To mess up a poor sucker
Isn't it lovely to have someone to hate
Doesn't it feel good to have someone to hate
Isn't it awesome to smash their face in
Isn't it lovely to have someone to hate
Hear the sound of necks breaking
Hear the sound of flesh cracking
Just follow the pointing finger
Over to where the grown-ups play
Chorus
Verse 1
Chorus
I believe that this song really encapsulates the power of hatred - and of the dehumanization that often follows. And the melody hits almost as hard as the words...
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