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In the quest to heal and, hence, truly win hearts and minds, two flourishing websites, Sorry Everybody and Apologies Accepted represent the emergence of a new and simple tool to bring forth change and understanding.
Born of despair over the U.S. election, the former consists of thousands of people extending personal expressions of apology to the world for the electoral outcome and its implications. The latter is the world’s response.
When official channels abandon diplomacy, the system adjusts and the people assume this role. This is humanpolitik vs. realpolitik. The expressions of kindness and sympathy are humbling, a reminder that people - in the main - are good and strive for the good.
These sites forge new ground: sunlight as an antidote to paranoia.
Consider the profundity this format represents: imagine sincere, creative apologies addressed between warring groups or across ethnic divides. The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission comes to mind.
Who or what else deserves an apology?
What about a site that isn’t necessarily even addressed to other people but, say, to our planet’s water or soil, realtime apologies addressed to animals we’re driving to extinction or cultures now being eradicated or imperiled?
Can "Sorry Everybody" expand to engage dialogue this direct?
These sites’ use of digital photographs is a stroke of genius. Putting a face to the words removes sentiment from abstraction and is a face-by-face reminder of just what is at stake when we act in the world.
Lastly, a hallmark of humanity is sparked in joining the visual with the linguistic, unleashing the artistic impulse. (It can only be a good thing to practice a little art because when our SUVs are empty tanks on the freeway and there’s no more oil to be extracted, we’ll be left to mine the ultimate renewable resource: the artistry of human creativity.)
Who knows, enough sincere apologies joined with the appropriate adjustments of behavior may render today’s sorryeverybody.com, tomorrow’s thankseverybody.com.
Posted by mark at November 17, 2004 06:57 PM