(Not So) Wordlessly Wednesday

the antithesis of freedom

One of my favorite ads of all time. I know it spoke to a political need to vote and let your voice be heard, but every time I look at this picture I can't help but think of all the other ways in which we imprison each other.

We deny freedom when we...

• Spend more time shouting than we do listening. Compromise cannot happen with our fingers in our ears.
• Define others (and ourselves) with labels instead of compassion.
• Expect others to not speak unless they have something nice to say because saying "He raped me" or "She beat me" doesn't feel very nice.
• Invalidate others' opinions or experiences because they are not our own.
• Judge another human based on only the things we can see and from a paradigm that doesn't account for their experience.
• Talk about a person rather than to them.
• Foster an atmosphere of fear rather than safety and acceptance. 
• Assume anything about anyone or any situation. Solutions don't arise from assumptions, but facts.

Anytime we stuff another person into a box of our own making we restrict their freedom--their sense of autonomy and choice. 

What are other ways in which we imprison people without actually throwing shackles on them? Does acting in a manner that pays no regard to others give us more or less freedom? 

What other thoughts are kicking around in your head? What does today's picture mean to you?