Election Response | National Humanities Center

Humanities Moments

Election Response

July 17, 2020

Harmer, Camille

Elections; Grief;

During the election week of president-elect Trump, I was upset. As I tried to make sense of my initial reaction and other’s reactions, a scripture from my youth came to mind. It reads, “…mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort…” When I was a child, I figured this meant you were supposed to comfort people that are crying. That week, I realized that people mourn in different ways. In this time, some of us post on social media, searching for validation and connection to friends with similar feelings. Some of us react by rioting, or by arguing, or just talking and trying to find our voice. Some of us react by hurting others around us. Fear and uncertainty causes varying reactions in people. On both sides of a lot of issues, people are in need of comfort.

During that week, a scripture (a form of poetry and philosophy) changed how I viewed an issue and helped me understand more people on both sides of the issue. In this instance, the humanities made me pause and think, and helped me be more kind to my fellow humans.


Subjects

Literature / Elections / Grief /

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