First World What?

First world problems. #firstworldproblems How many times do I see these words on Facebook and Twitter? My iPhone screen cracked. #firstworldproblems My internet isn’t working. #firstworldproblems There isn’t any food I want to eat. #firstworldproblems

I’m sad to say, I’ve posted my share of first world problems. I’ve even used the hashtag a few times before. And why not? We really do have first world problems, it’s an American thing. But do we really need to tweet and Facebook about it? Aren’t there much more things we can focus our time and energy and awareness on? No one cares about your tweet

My brother ate the last pack of s’mores poptarts today and now there’s nothing I want for breakfast. #firstworldproblems

People skip over the tweets. This is not something people actually care about, unless it’s your brother and he wants to laugh at you for getting up too late. But what if – and this is a crazy idea, I know – but what if we tweeted something like this?:

Around 50,000 people died of starvation yesterday. #worldproblems

Or this:

Nearly 2,500 Romanian orphans live in streets and sewers. #secondworldproblems

Or this:

More than 18 million children live on the streets of India. #thirdworldproblems

What was that? Your mom is making you clean your room? Oh my, I’m sure a child in India would love to have a room to clean. Or a mom to tell them to clean it. No, no, you’re right. Keep complaining.

I’m not trying to be rude, or mean, or antagonistic, or anything. I’m just tired. I’m tired of pretending I don’t care that people are starving. I’m tired of trying not to think about all the babies or mommies or sisters or brothers or daddies dying of easily curable diseases that we have vaccines for. I’m tired of hearing people tell me “my heart isn’t for the orphans/Africa/Romania/China/adults/children/trafficked women/abused women.” WHAT?! That doesn’t break your heart and make tears come to your eyes and push you to action? Your iPhone screen means more to you than a women being forced into sex with the fourteenth man this week – and it’s only Tuesday?

I don’t understand anymore. I don’t understand why people aren’t tripping over themselves to help these people. We’re America – aren’t we? Land of the free because we were tired of being oppressed? Land of liberty for all? All meaning… who again? All for Americans or all for all? Does all include the men, women, and children outside of America, or no?

We ended slavery in 1863. At least, we think we did. But I don’t think so. We don’t keep people as slaves anymore (excluding, you know, human trafficking, prostitution, etc.) But we are all slaves. We are slaves to our money. We are slaves to our easy lives. We are slaves to our first world problems. Break free, America! Break your bonds that you love so much. Break them and run. Run to the second and third world problems. Feed the babies. Clothe the children. Vaccinate the mothers. Run and never look back. Love the world and its people like you’ve never loved anything before, and I guarantee you won’t care about your first world problems anymore. Open your heart and your eyes to a joy you won’t find in your solid iPhone screen or s’mores poptarts.