Intolerance is a choice.

I wrote about my newly discovered dietary intolerance to cow’s milk and eggs a while back. I don’t break out in hives or go into anaphylactic shock. No, I merely get a belly ache. So, I do my best to limit (not eliminate) my exposure. My dietary intolerance is not a choice, but how I respond is.

However, what’s troubled me lately is the intolerance I see which is a choice. And this being Pride Month, what I’ve noticed is folks being publicly and loudly intolerant of the LGBTQ+ community at large, hating on people they don’t even know.

Leaders of the culture wars are like that. It’s their job to keep their followers fired up about something. Wokeness. Election fraud. Gun control. Banning books. Drag. Bathrooms. Reproductive rights. Pronouns. Witch hunts.

Believe me, next month it will be something else.

You see, as interest in one starts to wane, they bring up another to keep their base engaged and enraged. Like a pick-pocket, they keep us distracted while someone steals both our wallets and our better angels.

Recently, I publicly thanked my local library for their Facebook post featuring kids’ books that celebrate Pride and diversity. I believe it’s important for children to see themselves and their families represented in literature. I also think it’s our duty as adults to model compassion for others. My comment on their post said as much. Of course, that radical notion caused someone to attack me in his comments. He said he was disgusted that I’d ever been allowed to work in the school system and “groom” children. Wow. Just wow. Thanks for that, by the way. My blood pressure had been running a tad low lately.

Yes, I try to stay alert and sensitive to intolerance and hate I see and experience. And I often feel angry at the hurtful, ignorant, insensitive words and actions of my fellow Americans—especially those in leadership positions or on social media. I know I’m not alone. Even Michelle Obama admits to privately going low before she publicly goes high. Nonetheless, I choose to act with—at the very least—tolerance, compassion, and kindness toward everyone. Every day.

I challenge you to do the same.