There is no shortage of victims who live under the shame, humiliation, and guilt of an unjustified, harmful, or violent act against them. Victims of bullying in the workplace or school, theft, road rage, domestic violence, and rape are common examples. The trauma experienced is made worse by the compounding effect when others refuse to listen, believe, support, or advocate for them by doubting their story or shifting the blame back on them.

The growing awareness of victim blaming is an example of a shift in the public consciousness that has helped bring justice for the innocent and made way for important social change through movements such as #MeToo. This is but one reason why careful fact-finding and non-bias training have become vital tools in education and professional development. When victims are blamed for the violence committed against them, we lose sight of what is good and true. A society that rightly defends the innocent and disempowers the guilty based on shared facts and thoughtful judgment builds a better tomorrow for everyone. 

However, today we stand ever closer to a reality where progress in our social consciousness is exchanged for short-sighted answers and self-serving solutions. Partiality has become the new premise for alternative facts and narratives. Instead of allowing evidentiary conclusions to lead us to truth and equitable solutions, we are becoming a society where populist ideas and propaganda machines inform how we should view the world—including how we define victims and aggressors. History has already shown us where these social states take a nation. Upward mobility, privilege, temporary riches, and satisfaction may come to some, but ultimately, all will experience suffering across every metric of human well-being. 

For this reason, the complexity of our evolving and turbulent world demands more from us, not less. Progress is tested when society’s values fundamentally shift from shame to openness—a value that invites everyone to become a co-creator of the human experience.

Shame only seeks to reinforce a belief that people are consistently destructive, at fault, or deserving of the harm done to them. It’s no wonder, then, that some would blame victims of a war they didn’t start, the poor and those indebted by systemic oppression, peaceful foreign nationals seeking a new and better life in our country, or a medical innovation that failed to deliver on its promise for a few over the many it saved. These commonly repeated narratives are shaped by a growing social bias of shame that preys on the gentle, humble, poor, and peaceable among us. While often political, they are grounded in a worldview that emboldens ongoing injustices against ourselves and others.

The solution is not found in canceling or punishing the misguided. Instead, it’s to practice compassion because it’s the key to unlocking openness. Openness to diversity, education, and believing we fundamentally desire goodness over evil. It’s how we shift from partiality and power to a more promising, equitable, and hopeful tomorrow for everyone.