Dear Abigail

Abby,

I saw a picture today that made me sad. It's not important what it was - but it suffices to say that the words in the picture promoted ignorance and prejudice against a certain group of people. The sign in the picture promoted fear and intolerance.

The part that made me sad was not so much the picture - which was awful enough on it's own - but that the picture was being posted proudly by somebody who agreed with it - and several other people said they agreed with it too. And, well, that's what made me sad. It made me sad because those people are, at best, sadly misinformed and at worst - intensely prejudiced.

It made me wonder how they became that way. The first thing that pops into my head, of course, is - it's how they were raised. They grew up and inherited the beliefs and prejudices of their families and friends. I imagine most of these people base their opinions on what others tell them more so than facts.

I then felt compelled to write this to you. I believe it is my job to teach you tolerance. I hope to teach you to be open minded and open hearted to the vast amount of diversity in the world. It's the diversity around us that makes our world amazing and interesting. I will teach you how to be a critical thinker. I will make sure that you question things for yourself and don't rely too heavily on the opinions of others. I want you to learn to make educated and informed decisions. I want to teach you to promote peace.

I feel very strongly that most prejudice we see in society is based in ignorance and fear. I find it very difficult to hate a group of people that you take the time to get to know. Because, you know what sweetheart? All people are people.

There are good people in the world, and unfortunately, there are some very bad people too. But, I believe the majority is good. You have to be careful about the bad ones of course - but I hope you learn to differentiate that a few bad apples don't make the whole orchard rotten.

I suppose I just want you to know that I think it's important to be open minded and educate yourself on the diversity that surrounds us. Don't be afraid of it; embrace it and it will teach you tolerance.

I love you,

Mama