Spiritual Quote of the Day (bell hooks, on Fear and ‘Cultures of Domination’)

“Cultures of domination rely on the cultivation of fear as a way to ensure obedience. In its rhetoric such a society makes much of love and little of the pervasiveness of fear. Yet we are all so terribly afraid most of the time. Fear is the prevailing culture force that upholds structures of domination.  Fear promotes the desire for separation, the desire not to be known. When we are taught that safety lies with sameness, then difference will appear as a threat.” — Author, academic, feminist and social activist bell hooks, “Love’s Alchemy,” in Joyful Noise: The New Testament Revisited, edited by Rick Moody and Darcey Steinke (1997)

The image of bell hooks accompanying this post was taken Nov. 1, 2009, by Cmongirl.