Injustice exists everywhere, in every group. In a family unit, classroom, office, or friend group, there will always be some form of it. Sometimes it’s harder to see because in these settings the people around you acknowledge each other’s faults and are forgiving of injustices, but where there is a common enemy it is much easier to see.

One of the greatest injustices of our nation was the treatment of the Japanese Americans during WW2. Taken from their homes and forced to live like sardines in an oven, it is far too difficult for many people to acknowledge the faults of those who put them there, or those who believed it was the right thing to do, and move on. But these people are not who I want to write about. What goes around comes around, so we don’t need to take it upon ourselves to make sure it comes around on our own terms. I want to talk about fixing injustice, and how we are the people who need to do it.

There are several ways to go about this. The first is voting. Vote for those who pledge to fight injustice, and use your voice as a tool to build a better country, where, though injustice will happen, it will happen on an infinitely smaller scale than labeling thousands of people as a threat and taking away all that they have worked for.

The second way to fight injustice is in our everyday lives. This may sound difficult, it is incredibly simple. Respect everyone. Respect them for their actions, their beliefs, and their morals instead of judging them for things they cannot change. Respecting people is a mindset and should be a passive activity, though it may take some time to change the way you think of things.

Finally there is playing an active role, and this one is a bit more dangerous, but the rewards and speed at which things change are much greater. A prime example of this way of fighting injustice can be seen in the graphic novel, They Called Us Enemy, by George Takei.

Here we see that this man is showing kindness to those who face injustice, despite not having caused it and not being responsible for fixing it. He puts himself in danger to show love to people who have been hurt and abused by the country that welcomed them. 

We must take it upon ourselves to fix the mistakes of others, most importantly when we know that they don’t think they made a mistake. Injustice exists everywhere, and not every battle is as important as the next, but we must still pick the battles we know are most important, when we know the attacked cannot defend themselves and come out victorious.