Letter to a Leader of the Next Generation
Dear Sir,
I was sitting behind you yesterday at a conference at the University of Warsaw.
You were sitting there quietly, seemingly politely, dressed in
your smart pin-stripe suit --- at least you looked diplomatic. But
I want to bring to attention your behavior during the last panel, about
Legacy and responsibility, which I found inconceivable:
While a woman from Rwanda told the story of the deaths of her
Mother, father, her sisters, her brothers, and her friends during
The bloodbath genocide that killed over 800,000 people in three months,
You were looking at pictures of yourself on Facebook.
When a former prosecutor of the International Court listed
All of the international actions that were taken much too late
In Bosnia, Armenia, the Congo, Burma and Cambodia
Resulting in the deaths of millions of innocent men, women, and children,
You were choosing your next profile picture.
While the panelists discussed the desperate need for reform in
International law and policy in the world’s 196 countries and to
“Give a damn” about the other human beings on this earth,
You were desperately trying to fit a statement about yourself
In 140 characters on your twitter account.
What’s more, it is likely that your grandparents, your parents,
And the preceding generations of Polish citizens,
Sacrificed their lives so that you would have the
freedom and opportunity to get an education,
have a job, to have a life --- to have Facebook.
I am not sure I have been so disgusted in my life; I was
Irate, and I am certain that those sitting next to me could
Feel the heat of my anger rising off my entire body. I wanted
To scream at you, to shake you into awareness of what is
Happening in the world around you. But I waited, and
Soon my anger turned to sorrow, and compassion, not only
For you, but for the people in your life now and in the future.
I weep because one day you will be someone’s father, someone’s
Teacher, doctor, lawyer --- maybe you will even make laws in
This country, or the world; your new profile picture was with a
Famous politician, after all.
I weep because I fear that your attention is set in a different
Reality --- one where people connect electronically and
Relationships are no longer between human and human.
When a human ceases to be human, it is easier to be apathetic
About to their suffering, apathetic to their pleas for help.
I was sitting behind you yesterday at a conference about Jan Karski,
A man who jumped from a racing train to escape certain death,
Fought bravely with his brothers and sisters in an impossible uprising,
Experienced a ghetto and concentration camp and pleaded,
One man standing, to the Allied governments --- namely US and Britain,
Who turned deaf ear to his pleas at a point in the War when
Millions who later died could have been saved.
I am not asking you to jump from a train,
I am not asking you to pick up a gun and fight ---
But I am asking you, pleading with you ---
Do not let the world pass you by.
Peel your eyes from that screen and hear those who
Are with you here and now. Use the gift of the Internet
To become informed on the issues of the world, to
Spread advocacy for peace, justice, love, and compassion.
Dear Future Leader, I send you this as a friend, as a fellow human being,
As a plea on behalf of all humanity.
Not only do I hope and pray that your apathy does not contribute to
The immeasurable loss of life in the Central African Republic,
In Syria, Palestine, and in the slums of third world nations,
That you do not become blind to the suffering on your own
Streets, to the cries of help from your family, neighbors, and friends---
But I pray to God you wake up and become aware of the world,
so that you do not suddenly realize one day that you have missed:
The first cry of your newborn child, the soft smile of your wife,
The first blooms in spring, the changing colors of leaves,
A performance that makes you weep, a painting that takes
Your words, or a mountain view that cannot be recreated.
Because you have spent your life looking at a lifeless electronic object.
From the depths of my soul I wish you peace and all good; you are in my prayers.
- A Friend and Fellow Human