Just as we were preparing for a post-Covid new normal as it were, the ground seems to have shifted beneath us. The events of last week have brought to the surface our need to re-examine our institutions, attitudes and responses. However complicated, emotional and history-laden some of the issues might be, certain things are very straightforward, and do not require debate. While some of us may have suffered pain, anguish and injustice of some kind at some point or the other in our lives, the brutality, violence and destruction that we saw happen to our fellow human beings are not what we have come to believe as exemplary of just, civil societies and the greatest democracies in the world. Our leadership, statesmanship and fundamental sense of being human are being tested. This is a time for introspection, listening and dialogue within organizations, communities, cities, countries and the globe. Sections of our society feel that they are not being heard enough. We may not have readymade solutions, and may even believe we are on solid foundational values and principles. While we may have made a lot of progress over the years, we still need to listen, debate and work on even more reform. That’s the way we are approaching this in our own organization. This is a time for us – men, women, minorities, the disadvantaged and especially the youth (which the majority of the current protesters around the world is made up of) to come together and instill in each other a sense of trust, faith and hope – in our institutions, in our systems and the basic belief in the goodness of humanity, in decency and values we hold dear. Without such faith and hope, what else is there ? Together we will succeed and create that just society for us and for future generations!
Ram