THOUGHTS ABOUT TOLERANCE
I wear a silver crucifix around my neck. Not because I'm religious, or "awful holy" as my aunts might say ... but simply because I like crosses. A couple of months ago, I was in my local dry cleaners, and the owner praised me for wearing it. Bemused, I asked him: "why"?... and he replied: "because everyone round here seems to be Muslim. You're brave".
My first instinct was to express my disdain by using a well-known expletive. Instead, I just smiled, and said that people who truly follow a religion, would by extension respect other religions themselves... then I hurriedly stuffed my suit into a bag and left before he said anything else.
I thought of this conversation again today... I was walking down Uxbridge Road, Shepherds Bush, which is close to where I live. A stranger to the area could be forgiven for thinking they had entered some sort of Middle Eastern utopia.
I sauntered down the street, with my crucifix boldly on display. I stopped to buy my mother a birthday cake in a Lebanese bakery. Then I had an espresso in a Syrian cafe... As I walked past all the shops, full of colours and fresh produce and people laughing and chattering in Arabic... I thought to myself: "This is one of my favourite streets in the city... I love being here. The warmth of the people, the vibrancy of culture..."
You know what? The only thing missing from my chain alongside the crucifix, is the star and crescent. When we can all learn to embrace the richness and diversity of culture, we can start thinking of ourselves as a single race. Imagine what our species could achieve if we could free ourselves from the shackles of fear, hatred and intolerance?
