Believe in god Quote by David Levithan
““It's only in the finer points that it gets complicated and contentious, the inability to realize that no matter what our religion or gender or race or geographic background, we all have about 98 percent in common with each other. Yes, the difference between male and female are biological, but if you look at the biology as a matter of percentage, there aren't a whole lot of things that are different. Race is different purely as a social construction, not as an inherent difference. And religion-whether you believe in God or Yahweh or Allah or something else, odds are that at heart you want the same things. For whatever reason, we like to focus on the 2 percent that's different, and most if the conflict in the world comes from that.””
About This Quote
Source Speech: Public talk on diversity, 2015
Human beings share overwhelming commonalities across religion, gender, race, and geography, with only minor biological differences.
In simple terms: We are mostly alike despite superficial differences.
Key Takeaway
Focus on shared humanity.
Themes
diversity
commonality
conflict
identity
biology
Mood
reflective
hopeful
Type
philosophical
inspirational
When to use this quote
- Education
- policy making
- interpersonal dialogue
- media representation
Key Concepts
Social construction
biological percentage
human nature
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we shift attention from the 2% differences to the 98% common ground?
- What policies can reduce conflict rooted in perceived differences?
A Different Perspective
Overemphasis on differences can ignore systemic inequities.
