Straight forward, witty and timeless. #TellItLikeItIs, is a blog for our generation 
The full saying ‘Love thy neighbour as thyself’ has been shortened, ‘Love thy neighbour.’ As simple and well -known as it may be, it is important to know and appreciate the weight of this valuable phrase.
Hello Gen Y. Let’s quickly explore this essential piece of advice as it applies to this great journey we call ‘Life’.
If an individual were to love his neighbour as he did himself the world would be a much better place, and that is no exaggeration. If human beings treat each other as they expect to be treated the result would be a massive transition towards equality and equity in, race and other key areas of life. Honest.
Unfortunately, human beings may use different approaches outside of this principle to determine how they should treat another human being. Things which people tend to use include, social class, the colour of skin, the texture of hair, facial features, the quality and type of clothes worn, professional and celebrity profile and the list goes on.
In this day and age of reckoning which was thrust into the spotlight by events such as years of political instability worldwide, the most recent pandemic, the killing of George Floyd May 2020 & Breanna Taylor March 2020, the spike in violence against people in the AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community and other subsequent and prior reports of unfair killings and or police brutality, it is of utmost importance on this spectrum of the millennium to now ‘Love thy neighbor as thyself‘.
Let’s look at how the saying applies to us here in Dominica first (skipping over anything political, so that we remain politically correct, that is). Interesting to note, this year’s virtual calypso monarch, Daryl ‘De Bobb’ Bobb won the competition with a song titled ‘Go and Love Your Neighbour’, where he sings of better treatment for the Dominican people by those who are able to ensure better treatment is given.
The fact is,no one is too young, old or above learning the importance of the ‘Love thy neighbour’ philosophy. We all begin as children before we become the fabric of society. If children learn this from a very young age; seriously, it will greatly reduce bullying in schools and how they relate to family members and peers. If young adults practice this, it will reduce others feeling ostracized from various social groups and gatherings. If matured and older persons practice this, it will help create a level playing field for those in the workplace and other essential arenas of life.
Moving further afield the ‘Love Thy Neighbour’ strategy can speak to us in a regional context. Just take for example the recent eruption of the La Soufriere volcano in St. Vincent. This event called for the evacuation of thousands of Vincentians from the place they call home. While many of them could stay in shelters on the island, others needed and chose to relocate to other Caribbean islands. CARICOM leaders have stood in solidarity with St. Vincent by showcasing neighbourly love and allowing Venetian nationals to take up temporary residence in their country given the circumstances.
What about from a racial standpoint? The black community is not the only group which needs to experience the ‘love thy neighbour’ remedy, but Asians, Hispanics and all the other ethnicities that have found themselves sharing land,space, culture and economies.
The world has been battling the Corona Virus pandemic and mass violence for several years with no public, clear, real-time resolution. Therefore, protests develop, people are outraged and the reaction seems to be worsening daily. Do you know however, that this can be solved simply by treating others as you would like to be treated? Just think about it.
We don’t expect an overnight improvement and radical change from reading one article (although if we all consciously, really wanted to, this is very possible). It requires deep reflection within ourselves, choosing to follow this strategy and the willingness to change individually and collectively as communities, societies and human beings.. Although a person has being raised or brought up to treat people a certain unwelcoming way, once he or she truly analyzes the saying ‘Love thy neighbor as thyself’, and comes to understand that the way we treat each other upon further analysis reveals an eventual domino effect, well then a change of heart is almost certainly inevitable.
Written by: Andrea Louis & Dilma Bastien
For: Generation Y Dominica
Generation Y Dominica 