Since the dawn of time, humans have been categorised into race, caste, class, religion etc. But, with time it is becoming clear that these boxes are just social constructs. No single person can be fit into any single category. A simple genetic test would reveal that our ancestors were spread all over the world. A diverse group of people are the reason behind one’s existence, and hence these boxes are nothing more than a sham.
Convinced that the promotion of the culture of solidarity and the spirit of sharing is important for combating poverty, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly declared 20th December as International Human Solidarity Day.
According to the United Nations, International Human Solidarity Day is
- a day to celebrate our unity in diversity;
- a day to remind governments to respect their commitments to international agreements;
- a day to raise public awareness of the importance of solidarity;
- a day to encourage debate on ways to promote solidarity for the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals including poverty eradication;
- a day of action to encourage new initiatives for poverty eradication.
- Conduct Inter-Community Dining
- Encourage Inter-Religious, Inter-Caste or Transnational Marriages
- Stand Up for Different Communities
- Conduct a Movie Screening or Book Reading Featuring Diverse Artists
- Spread Awareness About Issues in Different Countries
Invite your friends from different communities and backgrounds to conduct an Inter-Community Dining. You can enhance the experience by asking your friends to bring cuisines from their culture. This celebration of diverse cultures will bring people together and has the potential to eliminate differences.
As already mentioned, groups are a social construct. People from different castes and religions can co-exist despite their differences in thought and belief. In India, marriage is not only the union of two people but also a union of marriages. So inter-caste and inter-religion marriages can bring communities together.
Hate and prejudice are rising in today’s era. In such times, we as human beings need to stand up when we see other communities being oppressed or facing injustice. Whether it be racial minorities, queer community or gender discrimination, it is the sole responsibility of humans to stand up for each other.
Each community and culture has their distinct form of expression. Instead of belittling each other, we must strive to find beauty in everyone’s way of storytelling. You can conduct a movie screening featuring movies around the world or you can conduct a book reading from authors of marginalized groups.
A lot of countries and communities are facing issues, even in today’s day and age. Your voice and support can mean a lot in such trying times. Use your power of social media to raise awareness about global issues.
Child Help Foundation (CHF) is committed to helping people despite their differences. CHF has helped 44,81,098 people so far with its various programmes.
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