We are culturally conditioned to be racist before we even know the word. We are culturally conditioned to be sexist regardless of gender identity. We are culturally conditioned to be heterosexist before we have a sexual identity. These ideas cannot be changed without first acknowledging we are living in a racist, sexist, heterosexist society born from the primitive shortcomings, ignorance, and hatred of our ancestors.

Racism is not a black vs. white issue.
Sexism is not a men vs. women issue.
Heterosexism is not a hetero vs. homo issue.

The enemy is not a person, nor does it have a face, other than the one you see in your reflection. The enemy is racism, sexism, and heterosexism. The enemy is unwittingly passed down from generation to generation. The enemy lurks within our minds, pervasively influencing the reality we create, and the enemy has manifested horrific acts of violence. The enemy has made drones of us.

The enemy would die one of two ways:

(1) The collective extinction of the human species.
(2) The collective transcendence of the human species.

I don’t see another way out.

I believe we have the capacity to transcend our limitations, but we will be far more effective if we learn from our past and target ideas instead of people. This will be difficult because as mortal beings we can easily be killed with bombs, guns, cars, violence, or even apathy, while a hateful idea can live on like a parasite jumping from host to host. Killing a person is easier than killing the enemy. Insulting a person is easier than killing the enemy. Fearing a person is easier than killing the enemy. We must be reflective of our own faults and skeptical of our institutional affiliations. We must be cautious of the double-edged sword of identity politics. We need to be effective.

If we are going to improve our community, we must adjust our tactics. To defeat the enemy we’ll need to work together, not as human vs. human, but as humans vs. hateful ideas.

 

 

Blaire Ostler is a leading voice at the intersection of Mormonism, feminism, and transhumanism. She is a Board Member and former CEO of the Mormon Transhumanist Association, the world's largest advocacy network for the ethical use of technology and religion to expand human abilities. She is currently pursuing a second degree in philosophy with an emphasis in gender studies. Blaire and husband Drew reside in Utah with their three children.

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