Humanity's Evolution, Part III

 By Renee Hughes

"Thank you," I said to the sea of human faces surrounding me. "I applaud your courage."

I heard Ezekiel, who stood directly behind me, clearing his throat. "Congratulations," he said without smiling. "Now prove how existing in these limited forms can help us understand the planet project."

I gave a swift nod and turned to my audience. "The 21st Century can be summed up in two words- suppressed change," I said magnifying my voice so every Little Dragon present could hear me. "Our ancestors lived and breathed one perspective for their entire lives. This made them limited, rigid and stuck. Change was to be avoided at all costs."

Murmurs of discontent greeted my statement. A tall light-skinned man called out an objection. "Just because our ancestors could not transform themselves into energy or other beings it doesn't mean they hated change. They came into this world as infants and left as adults a process full of alterations."

"That is all true," I said glad people were really listening to me. "Their bodies were in a constant state of growth but according to the ancient writings concepts that determined their belief structures were not. Often when confronted with a new piece of knowledge our ancestors would rather throw the knowledge away than change the basic structures of their beliefs. They found great comfort in keeping things the same."

"That is ludicrous," a woman with mahogany skin shouted. "No society would ever want to live in stagnation! To not grow but to stay the same is tantamount to death!"

"I agree that is true with individuals but entire societies in the physical realm thrived by making it very difficult for anyone to challenge a society's belief," I countered.

"Our ancestors had free will," she argued. "No one can force their beliefs on another. It is impossible."

"Yes," I agreed, "But they still tried to do it."

"Why would they try to do something that is impossible? " Another woman this time with short dark hair and almond shaped eyes asked.

"Because they had a deep-rooted fear of change," I said. This time people didn't cry out instead I saw many somber looks in the crowd. "The 21st century brought more technological advances than any other century forcing it to accept change but it protested every step of the way. Thus, the entire process was more painful than it had to be."

I looked out at my audience and saw several squirming at the thoughts I was forcing them to face. "Our ancestors weren't even united as people back then. They saw whole groups of individuals as less than the whole because of physical characteristics."

The man who asked the first question stated. "You are talking about those poor people discriminated against in Deborah Dorcas's famous works."

"No," I said with a heavy sigh. Deborah Dorcas was the bane of all 21st century historical anthropologists. She wrote a historical fiction series that claimed to take place around the 21st century but it was filled with inaccuracies. "According to the ancient texts, people with white skin were not persecuted because they looked like spectators of the dead."

"But it is true that people who had very dark skin were much better off than those with lighter skin tones. The rays of the sun in the 21st century were deadly to those without much skin pigment," another woman with dark skin added. "Really light skinned people had to wear protective layers of clothing and put on special creams. It was awful for them."

This was also discussed in Deborah Dorcas's books and true researchers know this is false information. "While Dorcas's stories are entertaining they are unfortunately not true. In many societies people with dark skin were the ones persecuted and discriminated against."

My audience did not take this news well. Many shook their heads in disbelief, and I heard loud murmurs of protest. I was loosing them.

"Forget the question of what skin color was more desirable," I stressed. "The important fact is that a simple physical characteristic like skin color meant a better life for some and a worse life for others. If we create a planet with a physical species, they might discriminate against each other in a similar manner. They might hate change as much as our ancestors and suppress an individual's rights to protect a society. If an entire generation of people are discriminated against, we will be responsible."

It became quiet enough for me to hear the wind rustling the leaves of a nearby tree. Ezekiel surprised me by breaking it. "What can we do to make sure that doesn't happen?" he asked.

"That is the question everyone of us must ask ourselves, and we can't vote to approve the planet project until we have an answer," I said.

That ends Part III. Next month is Part IV. If you have enjoyed this piece, please consider giving a donation of time or money to your favorite charity. A few worthwhile local organizations are Safe Futures, Inc., Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut and Thames Valley Council for Community Action. Together we can make a difference!