0: About Purple Is My Colour

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Summary
This podcast is introducing myself and my vision for finding the middle ground on the most polarising issues of our time. If you feel like the world is too black and white - or indeed, red and blue - this is the podcast for you.

Transcript
If you haven’t met me, my name is Jed Alexander and I have spent the majority of my life teaching and learning. The time I’ve spent with children of all ages has taught me one big thing - everyone learns in the same way regardless of age. As a teacher of high school students for around five years, I learned that if you want people to learn, you need to first understand and accept their starting point. They won’t be able to jump to your finishing point, no matter how much force you apply.



I remember trying to teach racism in the West to Taiwanese students. My students race is majority Han Chinese, in a country with 95 to 97% Han Chinese. Although their country has its own problems with racism against aboriginals and SE Asians, those views aren’t so prevalent and pervasive in daily life… so they just didn’t get it. No matter what I said, they couldn’t see why language or subtle, systemic actions against minorities and people of colour is such a serious problem. I had to stop telling them what they should know, and start asking them what they did know. Once these views came into the light - no matter how terrible they seemed or misguided - they could be looked at and examined and in this way, progress was made. You need to hear all sides of a debate before progress can be made.

Of course, this is easy for me to say. I do not suffer when JK Rowling talks about transexuals, or Boris Johnson talks about “pickaninnys” and “watermelon smiles”. Although they have a right to their views, the logic behind them and the harm they can do must also be taken into consideration. I am never going to give equal weight to two arguments that are unequal in their merits. However, a bad argument is like a vampire - if it hides forever, you’ll never destroy it.

So if you’re interested to know where the middle ground can be found between the most polarising issues of our time, come back for this initial three-episode series.We’re going deep, quickly - coronavirus, Black Lives Matter, and welfare. In that order. I hope you’re looking forward to it as much as me.


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