Against hate

In Asia, the Oct. 22 collisions of Chinese and Philippine vessels in the disputed Spratly Islands could invoke U.S. mutual defense commitments, and lead to wider regional conflict. In landlocked South Sudan, the outbreak of violence, competition for resources and climate disasters have left 8.3 million people in need of humanitarian assistance, many who have been subsisting on water lilies for the past two years. In any conflict, however, children suffer disproportionately.   

I don’t know how to stop the hate when it has already killed so many and taken so much. I also don’t know how to begin to wage peace but, from speaking with diplomats and listening to neighbors across the kitchen table, I’ve learned that the only way forward is to find common ground. I have yet to see a peaceful world, but we are realizing peaceful communities every day. They don’t always attract popular attention, but they work outside of echo chambers and without fanfare to bring forth opportunities, necessities, sanctuary.

This year, for United Against Hate Week, I decided to create a digital collage that reimagines iterations of peace. Anyone can participate by posting signs, sharing stories or connecting with schools and neighborhood civic institutions. Love is sometimes a hard ask, but peace? We can all agree that it is the only viable solution there is. Many of our choices are irreversible, and we can never go back. Either we work together or forfeit all. In this context, words matter — they can determine the conditions of war, or end it altogether.

Aileen Cassinetto currently serves on the Commission on the Status of Women and the Arts Commission for San Mateo County. She is also co-editor of the climate change anthology, Dear Human at the Edge of Time, a companion to the Fifth National Climate Assessment.