The famous cathedral and historic monument of Notre Dame in Paris burned and collapsed today. I watched the smoke from a distance without the stomach to go join the crowds of people mourning it all around. What a terrible tragedy.
Like all terrible tragedies that deal a serious emotional blow to a culture or a nation, the emotions start to take over and things can get out of hand quickly. When I opened twitter and searched “Notre Dame”, I expected to see messages of grief, unity and hope. And I did. But sure enough, there was also plenty of speculation about the fire as a potential terrorist attack. And there was the reaction to those speculations. And the reaction to those reactions.
All over the internet in real time, a back and forth is happening between people who were quick to jump to the conclusion of radical Islamic terrorism and people angrily calling out Islamophobia in return. Now, I’m writing this right as things are still unfolding so please forgive me if this post doesn’t age very well. But it looks like the fire has been ruled an accident linked to the renovations that the cathedral was undergoing. Regardless, a divided society will always find ways to turn tragedy, even accidents, into a divisive conversation.
Let me give you some context in case you don’t know much about social issues in France right now. France is facing challenges that are actually really similar to America with regard to terrorism. Both countries have suffered horribly at the hands of radical Islamic terrorist groups like ISIS or Al Qaeda over the last two decades. Consequently both countries now struggle with gauging the appropriate reaction to an attack. In other words, there is a dramatic split growing between the people who see terrorism as an threat stemming from the Muslim religion itself and the people who believe that those criticisms promote Islamophobia which poses a serious threat to peaceful Muslims. In both France and the USA, this is a subject that has proven to be deeply polarizing.
To me, it’s very clear that the enemies of a powerful nation/culture would love to see it fall apart from the inside. After all, history has shown us that Empires most often fall apart from within. Because when the people turn against each other, any external enemy pales in comparison to that internal threat. And that’s what I think is the most disturbing impact terrorism has had on countries like the US or France— the damage doesn’t end when the fire is out.
To this day, I see discussions about 9/11 causing tension and further dividing people. Every time there has been another attack, the conversations that followed seemed to pull us further apart. Can you imagine a team that always points fingers at each other when the enemy scores? Even when it was an own goal? That’s the kind of team that always loses.
**Please forgive my lack of a more appropriate analogy for such a serious topic**
So what I’m saying is that it really begs the question— do we consider ourselves to be on the same team? Personally, I’m very optimistic.
As I watched smoke rise up from Notre Dame, it made me sad at first. And then it made me reflect. The cathedral was 850 years old. It had seen 850 years of history. It had witnessed 850 years of glorious achievements and enormous strides for humanity. That progress was achieved by people who collaborated to be stronger together. Not by people who were busy accusing each other and calling each other names.
The threats are real and the challenges are real. Only a good team can overcome them. Don’t help your team lose.
Filip, again.
filipagain 
Leave a comment