In
the dark corners of this planet, there are places that innocent people get
executed for their same sex attraction or living the life that matches their
true gender identity. There are many of us who managed to escape from such terrifying
places. As LGBTQ people wander on a long journey in search of a refuge, many have
found the United States as the answer to freedom. This country gave us a chance
to live life with dignity along with the hope for a brighter future. The
freedom to marry the person we love which became possible during the Obama administration
gave many of us the chance to form families. Perhaps gay Americans who left their
small towns for a more tolerant metropolitan city might relate to an immigrant
who left his or her country for a freer society. It is possible we are more
similar than different.
Those
of us who found America a safe place for asylum are now starting to feel unsafe
again. The rise of xenophobia and the threat
of losing hard-fought LGBTQ rights are now becoming a new source of concern. Growing
acts of violence toward LGBTQ people and immigrants in general have been
reported in many parts of the country. LGBTQ refugees and immigrants who have a
history of trauma are more vulnerable to anxiety and depression when they
experience mistreatment due to homophobia or xenophobia. Protecting such a vulnerable
population from violence is important. They have unique psychological needs, and
they are dealing with the added complexity of being a minority within a minority.
Given
many refugees have lived under authoritarian regimes before coming to America, they
are often familiar with how these oppressive regimes operate. I am familiar
with them as well. Such regimes often come to power without the support of most
people or through lies and offering empty promises. Once in power, oppressive
regimes tend to manufacture a national security crisis by starting a war or
creating hysteria about a terrorist attack, which throws people into a frenzy.
People tend to rally around whoever is in power during a national security
crisis, and this is how oppressive regimes can gain legitimacy. These
manufactured situations give them excuses to oppress their opponents and even
try to “lock her up” for unsubstantiated claims. To maintain power, some authoritarian
regimes use military force to stop people protesting. Finally, by mindless reality
TV shows and shallow news programs, they can keep people unaware and distracted
from what is really happening to their country.
Undemocratic
regimes extend beyond external oppression and continue into our inner world,
eating away our human spirit. The creation of a culture of unconsciousness
causes many people to be cut off from their soul and their connection to the
inner world. People enter a state of participation mystique and lose their
sense of individual self. Authoritarian regimes take secret delight in knowing
that most people are sleeping walking through their political destiny and don’t
know what is really happening to them.
Many
psycho-spiritually aware people know that authoritarian dark forces aim to
spread hatred and prejudice by absorbing the light of our democracy. We can
turn to our own individual light of consciousness and witness what is happening.
Within our heart of hearts, there is a sacred place that dictators cannot
touch. Our activism starts by journeying into that sacred space. We go deeper
and deeper into the heart and embrace love. The love for America coupled with
our passion to care for Mother Earth vibrates above the forces of archetypal
evil. We don’t clash with darkness. We simply let the power of love rise us
above it. We broaden our focus beyond the unjust political situations by
embracing what is sacred in the inner world and honor its reflection on the
outer world. Through our experience of the numinous, we can create a container
for arrival of a new archetypal energy that can change the world for the
better. This is how we become spiritual warriors. This is how we don’t get
entangled in “good versus evil.”
Many foreign-born LGBTQ people who live
in America as an immigrants or refugees know that there is a deeper purpose for
our existence. Some of us are summoned to keep America accountable to its
promise of liberty by pointing out that the emperor is in fact naked whenever America
begins to abandon its true values. Not only as Americans but as citizens of the
planet Earth we can come together and protect one another during the rise of
archetypal evil. Not
only America, but this whole world is a living being, endowed with a soul
(Anima Mundi) and intelligence, in need of love.
Finally,
as LGBTQ people, our next journey of immigration needs to happen on the inner
plane. We can resort to our psychic refuge by walking through our inner
labyrinth and access inner light of consciousness to stay present. Such inner
journey is open to everyone, regardless of one’s nationality, who is seeking
refuge during such uncertain times in America.
For more
articles by Dr. Payam, please click on the following link: https://drpayam.com/articles_and_book
© PayamGhassemlou MFT Ph.D. is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
(Psychotherapist) in private practice in West Hollywood, California.
www.DrPayam.Com
