Reflection on Projection

I was just reflecting on my life, and was reminded what impact the concept of being an  independent thinker has had on my life, and how projection of others thoughts and feels has impacted my way of life. 

During the 15 years I ran The Awareness Center (which was the international Jewish Coalition Against Sexual Assault) I was accused of being a radical right winged conservative because I assisted survivors from some of the most insulated Jewish communities, and did my best to understand a culture very different then my own.  

What I thought was funny about those attacks was the fact that my bio clearly stated that I have an undergraduate degree in feminist studies, along with a masters degree in one of the clinical counseling fields. 

At the same time I was being attacked for being a radical conservative, folks from the ultra orthodox Jewish world would scream that I was a self-hating Jew, and called me a feminazi or a crazed liberal feminist — because I would shine a light on what I considered to be sexism and discrimination.  They couldn’t grasp the concept that a woman from a secular background could carry any political weight in their world — and because of that weight I carried I became I a threat they felt needed to be destroyed.  

So who am I politically?  I have never been a member of any political party.  My reasoning is that I don’t want to be subjected to “group thought” or peer pressure.  

I do my best to examine who supports the causes that are important to me, and vote accordingly.  I wish everyone else in the United States would do the same thing.  Vote with your heart, and not due to what your friends, family and or clergy members tell you to do.  It is important for each of us to be independent thinkers.