Solidarity

Solidarity

The first time I ever thought about what solidarity means was when I took part in an Erasmus+ youth exchange program between Sweden, Greece and Hungary. We talked about a lot of interesting topics that even though are very important, are rarely talked about. Solidarity was one of them.

I grew up in a Christian household with two wonderful social workers as my parents. Being helpful and attentive towards others in my childhood was not something I did consciously, rather it came from me thinking that’s just how the world works, that’s just how people act. Having that perspective of the world did cause me to have some disappointments growing up. It would be wonderful to live in a world where we do not have to think about the meaning of solidarity. However, the more we experience about the real world, the more we see what goes on around us, the more history we learn and the more news we read, the world I described seems rather utopian and just plain unrealistic.

That’s why it is actually worth it to sometimes stop and think about concepts such as solidarity, even though I think it’s almost as difficult and complex as love. First I thought it would be easy to write about it, but the more I got invested in it, the harder it became to put it into words. It is quite abstract in a sense.

I cannot really speak for other religions except Christianity, but I do know that solidarity has a big role in all of the world’s biggest religions. We, Christians, call it loving your neighbour. Other religions might call it something else, but it’s there everywhere.

It’s important to note that solidarity is not a new thing. It is almost as old as life itself. An ancient duty, that people always had. We can even see animals act solidary towards their weaker ones.

It’s hard to put a definition on it. We could describe it as a feeling we get, when we feel something like empathy towards someone, but I don’t think that that would be the point of solidarity. I would rather call it an inner calling that makes you want to bring some kind of change for the better. The point of solidarity is action. It can take on a feeling of desperation to do everything you can to make things better or easier for others and if you’re unable to do so, at least show that you are willing to.

It’s taking on a little bit of someone’s pain, trying to understand what they are going through and taking a stand by their side. It’s showing them that they are not alone and never will be. It’s telling them however you can, that you do see their struggle and you are willing to help.

Solidarity also has a lot to do with seeking justice. Always. Not only for yourself but for others as well.

We cannot live our lives saying that everyone should solve their own problems. That’s not how the world works. We, humans, want it or not, live together. We share a planet, a place to live on. It’s hard to really think about it and I don’t want to go much deeper into philosophy, but everything has to do with everything. This is what keeps the world going. We are literally unable to live a life that does not have an effect on whatever it is around us. Even the most basic things have an effect, like eating or breathing, let alone interacting with other people. The words we say, the way we look, the way we touch someone has some kind of effect, even if we’re not conscious about it.

So my question is: do we really have the right to say that we do not want to get involved in someone else’s life, saying that we would rather not help? Can we really say that? Can we really do that? I think deciding not to act has an effect on it’s own. So we would fail right at the start. That makes the question pointless. I think the correct question we should ask ourselves is: do I want to pass on a possibility to make at least a little portion of someone’s life better or do I want to do something good?

That might sound a bit harsh, but what is the point in our lives, if we just constantly let people down? Is it really easier to act like we don’t see the injustice, hoping that if we turn our head away from all the bad, all the terror, it will disappear? I suppose in a sense it is, but then we become part of the problem ourselves.

I am not saying we have to take all the pain of the world on our shoulders and we shall not rest until we solve it all. The secret is in the small things. It could be summarized by not walking away from the responsibility. Now that I think about it, it’s not easy at all. It might even be one of the hardest things.

However, we have to see that solidarity (being a quite wide concept) is one of the most important conditions of living together peacefully. Being considerate towards other people’s situation, not taking advantage of it and also, not taking the things we have for granted.

Acting solidary is hard. It’s a hard lifestyle to keep on, so to say. I feel like it gets less and less natural as we grow older and live more in this world. However I do believe, that with endeavour, we can sometimes achieve going back to that child, who does good because it just feels right.