Bridging the Divide: Benefits of Connection
By Rodney Bullard
CEO The Same House PBC | Former Senior Executive at Chick-fil-A / Global CSR, ESG and Marketing Leader | Best-Selling Author | Former AUSA | Former Air Force JAG l Corporate and Non-profit Board Director
“Invisible threads are the strongest ties.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
Bridges are built of hardened steel and are strong. It’s not fanciful but significant. It shows grace and compassion, regardless of who crosses it. This is witnessed in the Good Samaritan parable, where a beaten man on the side of the road is ignored by a priest and a Levite but is helped by a Samaritan who dresses his wounds and cares for him. When considering why two religious people did not stop and help this man, civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. said:
In the parable of the Good Samaritan: “I imagine that the first question the priest and Levite asked was: ‘If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?’ But by the very nature of his concern, the good Samaritan reversed the question: ‘If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?
“Love thy neighbor as thyself” is a simple verse to understand but often ignored in the follow-thru. This allows us to love the neighbor who shares our status, immediate vicinity, or lifestyle — the mirror image of ourselves. Most people agree with it in this context, but the subconscious interferes with expanding “neighbor” outside those borders. Our communities’ divisions over religion, politics, economics, and race have created deep-seated stereotypes and prejudices. This prevents people from crossing the bridge and offering unconditional compassion to all humanity.
Instead, many stand on the sidelines. We see what we want to see within our communities and comfort zone’s boundaries. Blind to the difference we can make by being more aware and empathetic to others. We turn into bystanders and wait for someone else to come to the rescue and take action. Social psychologists, Latané and Darley believe this is due to our diffusion of responsibility and social influence:
The perceived diffusion of responsibility means that the more onlookers there are, the less personal responsibility individuals will feel to take action. Social influence means that individuals monitor the behavior of those around them to determine how to act.
If we move away from passivity and offer compassion, others will notice and do the same. It’s about realizing our commonality and how both sides of the bridge share a connection. The things that make everyone human like empathy, love of family, and aspirations for the future. Those values supersede the differences that keep people on opposing sides.
Declaration: Today I will do all I can to build connections that support others.