Palatine - The sinister nature of conformity

Emperor Palatine is one of the most iconic movie villains of all time. Personally powerful, incredibly influential, and clever and intelligent. But one of the things that gets me the most about the sinister Darth Sidius is how very recognizable he is. If we look back on the endless history of empires and their militaries you always see the same thing. And I don't mean the militaries look the same. I mean that everyone in the militaries look the same.

Every storm trooper wears the same helmet. It unifies them, it creates that intimidating look that carries much of their power. It also, literally, dehumanizes the individuals. In the galactic empire there are no individuals, there are no 'people,' they are just masks. They are stricken of their identity and what makes them who they are.

This is reminiscent of all society. We are constantly, in both small and big ways, enforcing a kind of subliminal conformity on everyone around us. Buy a house. Get married and have children. Get around the city by driving a car. Steer clear of the homeless. The list could go on and on of the ways that we all expect others to be like us. But it's almost more sinister in the smaller ways that conformity is expected. Dress this way, talk to this kind of people, don't stand out.

And this is to be expected. There is a desire for conformity within people. We automatically gravitate to people who look, think and act like us. And this is never more apparent than in the church itself. In Kitchener alone we have Black churches, Korean churches, Ethiopian churches and, definitely, White churches. Beyond this the church has hundreds of years of history of people leaving one church family to join another which thinks more like them. So in the church we end up with a segregation of peoples, as well as a segregation of ideas and thinking.

Martin Luther King himself once said that the most segregated time in America is 11:00 AM on a Sunday morning. This is true to this day.

So what can we do to change this? I want to make it clear that I cannot consider myself an authority on this. But in this one idea I feel fairly secure.

"Listen to people!"

The most insidious thing about this kind of conformity and segregation is that we always end up confirming ourselves with the dominant group we're a part of. We find people who confirm our ideas, our thinking, and we let those ideas pour over us again and again. This is the echo chamber. We are constantly fed a meal reminding us that the things we think, and the people like ourselves are best.

The best way to combat this is to intentionally listen to people. Think about who the minorities in your lives are. Give them a stronger voice in your life. Ask them to tell you their stories. Flood yourself with the experiences of the homeless, the refugee, the single mother or anyone else who's voice is rarely heard in your life. Throw the balance towards their favor.

Always remember that the push towards conformity is the voice of Sidius himself. He wants it, it's best for control and order. Don't give that voice any more power than it already has.