Eclipsing our Biases

I love Jake Brigance’s summation to the jury in A Time to Kill. He’s a white attorney representing an African American man who shot and killed the white men who raped his 9-year-old daughter. In the end, he asks the jury to close their eyes and, in graphic and emotional words, tells the story of that horrific day. Then he asks the all-white jurors to imagine that the girl is white.

We can overlay this on a million different scenarios. The value of doing so allows us to take another’s perspective. To expand our minds and wrap them around a point of view perhaps other than ours, one we might not have considered, and even one with which we disagreed. The willingness to be vulnerable to examine where our allegiances lie can result in a profound awareness. And it can change us.

When I only avail myself to people who agree with me, I miss insights and exposures that could benefit me. When I only let myself be influenced by those who believe what I believe, I miss considering options and alternatives. And when I judge those who are different than me, it’s me who has chosen poorly and narrowly.

It’s impossible to be right about everything, but it is possible to look objectively at all that lies before us, next to us, and ahead of us. For our collective betterment, we can celebrate the common humanity we share. We can remind ourselves that mixing ideas generates creativity, respect, and collaboration. Because at the end of the day, we all want the same things: security, love, and equality.

Do you feel like I do? Ready to serve yourself a healthy slice of detached neutrality topped with vulnerability, open-mindedness, and kindness? We need to be the best versions of ourselves and teach our children to do the same. It’s time. It’s our time.

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