The Power of Ubuntu

“I Am Because We Are”

The human race is one. In UBUNTU, there is not you, there is no me, there is only we.
Desmond Tutu (the archbishop of Cape Town who was a leader of the anti-apartheid movement and who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work.) explains Ubuntu with these words: **No Future Without Forgiveness (memoir, Desmond Tutu)
“One of the sayings in our country is Ubuntu – the essence of being human. Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that you can’t exist as a human being in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness. You can’t be human all by yourself, and when you have this quality – Ubuntu – you are known for your generosity.”
“We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole world. When you do well, it spreads out; it is for the whole of humanity.”
As we get ready to celebrate another year of freedom in United States of America, the UBUNTU philosophy has been rolling around in me. It’s not about “I”, or “YOU”, there is only “WE”. Everything we do creates a ripple effect because we are all interconnected. We feel each other’s pain, we hurt for others, we cry with others, we laugh, and celebrate with others. “My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together.” – Desmund Tutu
Many of us have been taught that it is about “me” and to fight for our rights, to fight for our freedom. I’m not saying that it’s not important to take a stand. Often times we take a stand at the expense of others because we want to be right, we have something to prove, we want to be heard. We are responsible for more than just ourselves… It’s so much bigger than that. The people we are responsible for (our family, our teams at work, our communities, relationships) often play a role in influencing our lives and many times the consequences of their actions fall upon us and vice versa.
If we allow differences to define a relationship, we will always be at odds with others. Ubuntu asks:

• “What do we have in common?”
• “How can we best work together?”

An excerpt of the lyrics to “Be A Light” (Thomas Rhett, feat. Reba McEntire, Hillary Scott, Chris Tomlin & Keith Urban) is really about UBUNTU:

In a world full of hate, be a light
When you do somebody wrong, make it right
Don’t hide in the dark, you were born to shine
In a world full of hate, be a light
It’s hard to live in color, when you just see black and white
In a world full of hate, be a light.

There is so much power in UBUNTU… to stop, pause, and look another person in the eye and really see them. Acknowledging them for their existence and to know that we are in this together.
Freedom comes with a high price to pay. It’s for all of us; not for just you, me, or some of us… it is for all of us.

I see you
I hear you
I value you
I believe in you
I am because we are – Ubuntu
Mary Belden-McGrath