It’s easy to point fingers at Donald Trump and be astonished at the incredulous things he says, but how often do you notice the subtle digs and aggressions toward women, LGBTQ and people of color on the daily?

I can guarantee you that Donald Trump’s ideas are not a new concept; he just has a bigger platform to speak the things minorities have been hearing for decades

There is still prejudice and there is still inequality, and denying this does not make the problem go away. In order to be a true ally to those oppressed within our society, we need to admit we aren’t perfect all the time.

I am someone who is pretty active in social communities committed to movements to ensure that every member of society is treated equally and fairly. Whether it is feminism or Black Lives Matter or any other kind of hot social topic, people tend to be polarized by opinion on every platform.

I found an interesting pattern during my time scrolling through Twitter, Facebook and news article comments from friends, family and strangers alike.

I discovered that those who oppose the movements created in the name of social reform have misplaced their anger.

When an unarmed black man is shot and killed when many armed and dangerous white men are somehow deescalated using non lethal tactics, people tend to place their rage in those pointing out the issue of normalized systemic racism, rather than the racism itself. This is done in order to save face and believe that we have completely moved on from the horrors of our ancestors.

I believe this comes from a fundamental instinct within humans to hide their flaws and exaggerate their strengths. It is a natural trait, and not an inherently bad one. However, in terms of social progress, it can certainly be detrimental.

When you do not get the desired result in a math problem you double check your work and look for your mistake. You recognize that your original way did not produce the correct answer and you move forward with this in mind, determined to use the right methods in the future. Why isn’t this same logic applied to social situations?

Admittedly, the answers for social problems aren’t so clear cut as mathematics. The solutions are never neatly divided into boxes of right and wrong, drawn with hard lines in black and white.

It’s gray and messy, and every decision is almost guaranteed to make someone angry. This does not make them any less important, and I would argue that it makes them one of the most interesting and pertinent questions we need to ask ourselves as we navigate this world.

For these questions make or break real human lives, its effects recorded down in history books for future generations to study and write their own school newspaper pieces about.

As a society and culture, we are continually changing. Culture is constantly evolving, hopefully to be more inclusive, intelligent and morally superior than the generation before us. It must not be forgotten that slavery was once legal, women didn’t have the right to vote and homosexuality was treated as a mental illness.

We must always evaluate our treatment of those who we perceive as “different,” because history has not been kind to those who deviate from the “norm.” What we think is normal now could horrify future generations and our culture thought of as savage and primitive.

This is why it’s imperative to acknowledge our mistakes, rather than glorify our past and how it still permeates our society today. Pretending we are a universally fair and utopian society where everyone is this world can simply work hard and get what he or she wants is childish.

It’s easy to not think of money as a problem when you have it. The same applies to privilege.

The truth is, even as someone who considers herself dedicated and seriously involved in social issues, I mess up sometimes.

Unfortunately, as a result of growing up in the society we live in today, I have internalized racism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, Islamophobia, etc.

However I am constantly taking a look at my actions, thoughts and ideas.

Learning, unlearning and listening to my peers when they recognize a toxic ideology in myself that I had not noticed before is how I improve. Most of my peers understand my intentions to keep improving myself and as a direct result, improve everyone else.

However, I find many people choose pride over progress.

They want to believe they can do no wrong, that they are perfect all the time, that any one criticism of their opinion on the treatment of others is a personal attack on every fiber of their being.

They are often unwilling to admit the table is tilted in their favor. Those fighting to even the table are taking away from them instead of evening the playing field.

I urge you to not scream “not all of us are like that!” when faced with criticism but instead “I am going to try and educate and inform those within my community who are like that.”

Look within yourself, call out your friends if they make unfunny jokes at others expense and stand firm in your beliefs even if your family pokes fun.

I understand that it’s hard to admit flaws about yourself, things you are passionate about and the place you were raised in, friends, and family.

But it is imperative that you sacrifice a bit of your pride to help the world.