I'm gonna say something about this, because while tumblr is nitpicky about stuff like this at all times, this time it's also making its rounds in a far broader part of the population, especially on Facebook. DON'T SHAME PEOPLE FOR GRIEVING MORE ABOUT THE VICTIMS IN PARIS THAN THOSE IN BEIRUT, BAGHDAD OR ANYWHERE ELSE. Yes it's true, they should be mourned just as much and the loss of each of their lives isn't any less tragic, but don't blame people for what is a) only human and b) not their fault. But let me explain. We all know that the majority of tumblr users lives in the (so-called) western world. (This, by the way, is something I regret and wish that it changes.) Which means that they either live GEOGRAPHICALLY closer to Paris than to Beirut or Baghdad or they're CULTURALLY closer to it. And as wrong as it may be, it's the most natural thing to feel more for something you know than for something you don't know. Think about it- if someone you know is applying for a job, you want them to get it, even if another applicant might be better suited for it, more in need of a job or a better person. That's not fair, but still how you feel. If someone you know has a baby, you feel more happy for them than for the woman one hospital room further, even though she just gave birth too. If you look at it closely, that's not "fair" either, but, um... logical? And if someone you know dies, you're definitely more sad than if someone completely random dies and you hear about it. How is that fair? All lives are worth the same and yet you're acting like that person you knew was more important than the person you didn't know. I think you're getting my point. Many people are sadder about the Paris victims because the whole thing feels so much more close to them. Not fair, not rational, but really, really normal. Which brings me to b): why it's not people's fault that an attack in Paris hits closer to home (literally) than an attack in Beirut or Baghdad in the first place. This is the fault of the EXTREMELY western-centric, uh, EVERYTHING they get to see and hear. 99% of history that's taught in schools takes place in Europe or the US. 99% of TV or movies is set in Europe or the US and centers around people from there. 99% PERCENT OF NEWS REPORTED ARE ABOUT EUROPE OR THE US. How can you NOT start thinking that Europe and the US are the center of the world? Remember, we're not talking about just the well-educated people who know how to access information and who know that it's important to never stop learning. We're also talking about people who are less self-aware and less aware of the world because they don't know any better. Yes, they're committing an injustice, but they don't even know about it. Lack of motivation (to make the effort to show the side that is less looked at), greed (to unimpededly exploit the third world without anyone protesting its rights) and political strategy (to maintain the hegemony of the West) are what keeps the media and the government from showing us a more multi-faceted view of the world. And this is where we all come in. I said that it's not our fault for feeling that the events in Paris are more "real" than the events in Baghdad or Beirut, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't change anything about it. Since no one will educate you: EDUCATE YOURSELVES. Read about countries that aren't western. Learn about the cultures. Maybe even learn a language. Talk to people from non-western countries. Make friends. Ask your schools why their curricula are so unbalanced, ask your newspapers why they don't cover news from other parts of the world when every new day that happens in the western part of the world also happens in the rest of the world. Protest your country's unfair actions against other nations. And most important, stay eager to learn. Stay inquisitive. But don't beat yourself up about not being as shaken up about Baghdad, Beirut or anywhere else than you are about Paris. That's what you've been conditioned to do and that's only what's natural. Grief isn't a thing you have control over. It's not something you can willingly put into portions, like "I'll divide my total grief up into 33.3% grief about Baghdad, 33.3% grief about Beirut and 33.3% grief about Paris." It's a feeling, and like all other feelings, it's subjective. This is not something to be ashamed about. When you learn more about Lebanon, Iraq or any other place, they will feel closer to you automatically. And you can help everyone else with this and bring justice to this whole affair by demanding the media and the governments to finally treat the non-western parts of the world as equally important.
