“Get up. Stand up. Stand up for your rights. Get up. Stand up. Don’t give up the fight.”—Bob Marley
I heard an interview the other day with a young person making the statement: “We won’t stand for….” It struck me how the language sounded wrong. Should she not have said: “We will stand against…”?
I am often a bit of a grammar snob (though I get caught myself in poor grammar and misspellings, from time to time). I understand the statement the student was trying to make, but I see a significant difference in positioning—whether intended or not.
To “not stand” implies a passive approach. It says: “I am against this, but I don’t want to fight”.
To “stand against” is to get into the face of the enemy. It says: “I will fight, whatever the personal cost.”
The differences are subtle, but I perceive there is a significant difference. We, as a society, need to stand against evil—not merely protest that something be done—not demand legislation against what evil does. Take away evil’s weapon, and it will pick up another.
So often, I have seen videos of people standing by steaming images of someone being harmed. Rarely, do we see someone taking the risk to stand up and step in. When we do, it is because someone else chose to film another’s heroism rather than take a stand.
“We won’t stand for…” speaks of entitlement—i.e., “You have no right to do this to me.” “We will stand against…” speaks to empowerment—i.e., “You will not get away with this.”
We have lost our sense of personal responsibility. We need to learn to stand—together, if possible; alone, if necessary.
Carpe momento!