I had a couple of posts in mind for today, but then my friend posted the following video from Upworthy. When I saw it, I knew I had to share it here.
The video features Svante Myrick, who became a town councilor when he was 20 and the mayor of Ithaca, New York when he was 24. He spent the first six months of his life living in a homeless shelter.
He speaks of what poverty feels like. The power of love and support and feeling that anything is possible. He talks about “cleaning the air” by participating in politics. The most inspiring part of this video, though, is a story about an interaction between a black teenage boy and an older white woman in an elevator.
How we treat each other matters.
Our words make a difference. Sometimes more than we know.
A simple interaction in an elevator can make a huge impact in someone else’s life.
We all deserve to be treated with dignity, no matter our background. I am reminded of this every day in my own work.
The video is short, but the inspiration is big.
Now watch this video from UNICEF. Because after I set up this post, I saw it. And it illustrates so powerfully how we treat others based on their appearance and the effect is has, even on an actor.
