Sure, it’s just a joke.

We feel like there aren’t any consequences. We feel like our words don’t mean much, because no one says they do.

But we don’t listen, do we?

We don’t listen to the trans kid, worried about their friends making jokes about their transition.

We don’t listen to the Latinx kid, as they hear their peers mock the way they speak.

We don’t listen to the disabled kid, as they’re dismissed as “extra chromosomes” and “retarded.”

We don’t listen to the gay kid, trying ever so hard to come out, even when he’s mocked for who he might love.

When we only stand for issues because they directly affect us, we don’t really stand for much, do we?

When we decide to stop listening, we also decide to support the systems that hurt these people.

I’ve listened. 

I’m not perfect; I make mistakes.

But at least I can say I care.

Can you?