Wednesday 16th November was deemed the International Day for Tolerance by the United Nations in 1995. In observance of this, the Upper Six students of St. Joseph's Convent, Port-of-Spain conducted mini-workshops from Tuesday (15th November) through Thursday (17th November) in order to raise the school community's awareness about the important topic of Tolerance.One of the first questions we asked was, "What does Tolerance mean to you?" The responses were extremely diverse. Some girls simply looked at us like, "Huh?"Upper Six student Allana Simon said, "It means being able to see other people's shortcomings and treat them well because they are doing the same for you."A form three student said that to her it means, "Accepting people for who they are, regardless of your differences."
Both persons, although they interpreted the question in a different sense, are absolutely correct. Very often we judge others by our personal standards, and when they fail to meet up to them, we decide that they are not worthy of being treated well. However, a tolerant individual is aware that we are all human beings, none of us are infallible; we all make mistakes. Therefore, we try our best to show at least a basic respect for others, since other people also have to look past our flaws.In a more general sense, Tolerance is having respect for others, regardless of differences of race, religion, nationality, gender or sexual orientation. When interacting with people, we should treat them how we would like to be treated.Do your part as an individual and try not to let prejudice blur your objectivity when dealing with people.
Intolerance is a disease.
Here are some of the symptoms:
• Racism
• Sexism
• Bias against other religions
• Xenophobia (dislike of foreigners)
• Homophobia
Intolerance breeds more intolerance. When we treat someone badly based on their differences from us, it creates resentment.Intolerance can also lead to violence. Reflect on all the disastrous events caused by sheer prejudice and intolerance: the Holocaust, the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, the Rwandan genocide and the September 11th tragedy to name a few. All those lives were lost, and for what? Let us learn from history, and do our best to make this world a more tolerant place in the future.Tolerance creates Peace. Do your part as an individual and try not to let prejudice blur your objectivity when dealing with people.Tolerance comes from Love. When you love others, you find the strength to tolerate them.
