On Othering

Though we find the rituals and methods of witch trials disturbing, misogynistic, and reprehensible, they do make for a good discussion on something that has plagued human society since its inception: othering. According to Malcolm Gaskill, “the term ‘witch’ implies someone not like us, the opposite of an ideal,” (p. 1). However, this definition can also be applied to the many populations that have been cast aside and discriminated against, not solely to the poor, childless and single women who were persecuted as witches.  

 

Skepticism and rejection of others differing from ourselves has an overwhelmingly negative impact in today’s global and civilized society, laying the foundation for bigots and xenophobes to attack those who they may differ from in race, religion, or belief.  The first examples that come to my mind are slavery and segregation, the internment of Japanese-Americans in WWII, the Holocaust, Islamophobia, and the escalation of anti-Asian rhetoric following the rise of Covid-19; like the witch-hunts, these are all examples of prejudice and persecution based on mass generalizations of groups and their perceived wrongdoings or shortcomings.  Further, like the witch-trials, many of these groups faced discrimination as a result of misdirected fear from the greater population: segregation as an effort to keep power in white hands, the internment of Japanese-Americans as a result of the fear that American war efforts sabotaged by fellow Americans, the rise of Hitler and the Holocaust fueled by mistrust in charge of Jews involved the German financial system, the increase in Islamophobia following 9/11, the spike of anti-Asian hate crimes following the outbreak of Covid-19, and the rise in protectionism in the US, particularly towards Mexico and Asia. 

 

It should go without saying that prejudice should not be normalized or excused in any form or for any reason.  However, it’s interesting to note one common thread throughout each of these examples: fear of the unknown, whether that be fear of losing power (segregation), fear of a new disease (Covid-19), fear of destruction of one’s life and home in a war or terrorist attack (Japanese internment and Islamophobia), fear over a crumbling financial system and the inability to purchase food or fear of losing jobs to immigrants and outsourcing.  Similarly, the witch-trials turned to blame those unlike themselves for challenges like plagues and dying cattle.  Why, in each of these situations, have those in fear turned to attack a minority group that they (wrongly) associate with the issue?  None of the reactive measures, such as physical or verbal attacks, imprisonment or genocide, helped in any way to ameliorate the root issue of the fear and uncertainty (the illness, the war, the evolving economy). 

 

Though I lose more faith in this prospect every day (of course with the division over Covid, but also in response to the brewing situation in Ukraine), I often wonder what the world would be like if, as humans, our first reaction was to have compassion in working together to solve the issues that plague so many: disease, destruction, financial hardship, and hunger, among others.  However, such a utopian idea reminds me of the song “Imagine” by John Lennon: 

 

Imagine all the people
Livin' for today
Ah

 

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion, too

 

Imagine all the people
Livin' life in peace
You

 

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

 

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man

 

 

But the fact is, the rise of “othering” has escalated in our society since the 2016 election, with people losing trust and respect of their friends, family, and neighbors based on their preferred candidate. It seems to have only worsened since the rise of Covid-19 in the last two years. I know the world would be a happier, more peaceful place if society were less divided at every turn, but I don’t even know where we could begin to make that dream a reality.