Are we becoming numb to tragedy?

It seems that every morning we are waking to the news of a new tragedy – a new attack somewhere in the world, with a fresh body count. Each brings another blow to people, weakening their hope and faith in the world. It’s disheartening, but are we becoming numb to it?

With each new tragedy comes a new hashtag, flooding social media for 24 hours only to be forgotten and added to the ever growing list. In fact, now #prayfortheworld has arisen to neatly cover all attacks. It is becoming a trend and I fear we are becoming numb to it all. Are we waking to news of a new attack so often that it has become nothing more than a part of our morning routine?

The media coverage only encourages this behaviour by never returning to topics. Occasionally, the Paris attacks will be compared to a new one – they will show services and speeches a few days later, but it all seems to be getting lost in the muchness. Reports of hundreds dead are squeezed in between the weather and sports.

We simply cannot let this happen. These senseless attacks cannot become the norm. Families being torn apart, the mass murder of nations cannot be condensed into that day’s hashtag, which you skim over at breakfast without really acknowledging it. Instead, we must make an impact, show our support and solidarity to those who need it. We need to prove that this isn’t going to break us; we will stand together in peace.

Social media can seem like this has all become a daily trend, but showing support and love in the face of tragedy is the trend we all need right now. The outpourings of support continue for as long as there are those who need them.

With the body count rising every day, it’s easy to get lost in it all, and hard to see the point in trying to fight the mess the world has become. But that’s exactly why we need to. We only become numb if we let ourselves – if we shut ourselves off from this and bury our heads in the sand. Maybe it will hurt less, but for how long? With the rising number of attacks across the world, it feels like only a matter of time before someone you know gets caught in the crossfire. And when that happens, won’t you be happy for those brave enough to show support and fight against the pain?

By Zoe Wallbank