Growing Up in a World Full of Hate

     When I entered elementary school I learned a lot of new words, words I hadn't heard before. In my innocent little mind I thought words like "shut up" and "stupid" were curse words. But when I came to school and met all the other kids I learned a whole new vocabulary. Thirty kids all blending their vocabularies together; I was bound to learn a few new words. Little did I know that my vocabulary was just beginning to grow. As I grew up and expanded my horizons to new people, I learned that there is so much hateful language in this world. Each day I witness countless forms of aggression- whether it be micro-aggression or just plain hate. This aggression can be caused by many different things. Many people blame what they say on being upset, as if being upset gives them the right to say whatever they please. This fallacious idea makes aggression seem a solution to problems, but it is the exact opposite of that. No matter what the root of this aggression is, it is never the best option. Maya Angelou once said, “Hate, it has caused a lot of problems in the world, but has not solved one yet.” Just as fighting fire with fire is ridiculous, fighting hate with hate is just as pointless. So, why do we create all this hateful language? Furthermore, why do we continue to use this hateful language? My best guess it that it's because that's what we learn in this world-not love, but hate.