Sup Juggalos,
This Sunday I talked a little bit about the Juggalo House Theory. Some of you may remember reading about how the Fellowship Of Juggalos interprets Juggaloism kind of like a House. Family is our basic building block, our foundation. Coming up out of that foundation are the pillars of Individuality, where as each one of us are Individuals and have the right to interpret the Carnival and Faith as we so choose. Bonding this Individuality together is Acceptance which acts like the walls for our proverbial house. Each one of us must Accept each others differences. Our ability to Individually Accept one another for who we are is what holds up the roof of Unity and Strength. I think every Sunday before the actual sermon I would like to share a little bit about FOJ so that Juggalos can make informed decisions on their own.
Also, this Sunday I played a controversial song on the air. I played a little bit of Corporate Avenger. I wanted to make sure that ninjas understood that the purpose of that song wasn't to cast a disparaging view on one particular faith group. The purpose of playing that song was to show an extremist mentality that was very common during the 1400s and some would say still exists today. I'm going to use this example and others to discuss Segregation versus Unity.
Extremism, which is the underlying overtone of Segregation, is a mind set. It is the mentality of if you are different than me or you act, dress, or worship different than me then I will seek to either separate or segregate you from the flock or I will attempt to wipe you out. Where as, Unity can also be viewed as a mind set. A mind set in which the Individual instead of attempting to segregate people who are different, or share a different ideology, try to relate with those who are different or at the very least accept their differences. With Unity a person has the attitude of welcoming another Individual where as with Segregation a barrier is drawn between one group of people and another group of people.
We can see this form of Segregation when you look at the topics of Race, Gender, Lifestyles and of course Religion. Some people view their Faith in a manner of if you are not a part of that Faith then you should be cast out. In some cultures one group attempts genocide on another group in an attempt to wipe out those who are different. Rights are restricted and basic needs are withheld with the purpose of constricting one group or another. In some cases alternative demands are set forth, with one course of action being joining one group while the alternative course of action is destruction.
Some people have no faith at all, the Fellowship views this acceptable in the sense that each person has the right to choose. It is not our place to judge and we will not take the role of judge, juror and/or executioner. However some people take their choice of not having faith a step further. For whatever reason, be it by choice, by logical conclusion, or perhaps by feeling disenfranchised or may be even been burned by a particular faith group, these Individuals have decided not to have faith, but where that choice becomes more of a guiding force than a choice is when those Individuals choose to segregate those who do have faith. Almost to the sense that whenever they encounter someone who has faith they seek to crush that faith or be down right disrespectful. Now it is very important to note that this form of behavior is more often than not displayed by religious zealots as well as those who choose not to have faith. It is also important to note that not everyone who either belongs to a certain faith group or chooses not belong to a faith group exhibits this behavior. Remember I am just talking about Segregation mentalities that can belong to the believer and the non-believer alike. Segregation mentalities are not limited to a particular group, it is dependent upon the Individual to hold such feelings inside them and act upon these feelings of hate.
The vast majority of people in our culture as well as around the world hold the mentality of mutual understanding and respect. Where Unity of common thoughts, common views and common values binds people together instead of trying to tear humanity apart. Having a mentality of Unity involves opening one's mind to new experiences. Even when you don't agree with these experiences we try to relate to them and at the very least try to understand why an Individual does what he/she does. Knowledge drives Unity. Knowledge is power. Knowledge destroys fear and eliminates stereotypes.
Juggalos, in the song that I played from Corporate Avenger we saw a prime example of Segregation and Extremism. We saw how one culture came upon another culture that was entirely different from its own. In the late 1400s, European Christian zealots came upon Native American peoples. Instead of being appreciative of the Native Americans generous culture or hoping to gain understanding and mutual respect. One side decided to Segregate and Subjugate the other side. Instead of sharing a plentiful harvest, one side decided to commit acts of atrocity towards the other side with the purpose of forcing their will upon what the extremists viewed a barbaric and weaker society. Sometimes might does not make right. It is better to learn from another culture then it is to fear them and in an essence annihilate them. It is also important to understand that in most cases the destructive segregate viewpoints are not always shared by an entire culture. It may just be a few select elite Individuals who instead of embracing new ideas, they feel threatened and try to drive a wedge in between what they view as sacred and what could be gained by learning of another viewpoint.
We must be better than our ancestors. We must learn from their mistakes and evaluate what is a better course of action for future generations. What kind of Juggalos would we be if we allowed Segregation, Bigotry and Hatred to infect our culture? What would we be teaching our children? How would the future of our Family turn out if instead of showing Love and mutual respect with the values of Unity, we choose instead to be the thrower of stones.
MCL
