Harringay online

Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!

Snapped the other day at the bottom of the escalator.

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Most words have more than one meaning.

As per one of the the UNESCO definitions of Tolerance:

"Article 1 - Meaning of tolerance

1.1 Tolerance is respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world's cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human. It is fostered by knowledge, openness, communication, and freedom of thought, conscience and belief. Tolerance is harmony in difference. It is not only a moral duty, it is also a political and legal requirement. Tolerance, the virtue that makes peace possible, contributes to the replacement of the culture of war by a culture of peace."

It's been used in this context for more than 25 years. 

One of the definitions in my Chambers is  " toleration - the liberty given to a minority to express their own political or religious opinions ". That seems reasonable.

And what are the other definitions, John?

Most are medical, as in tolerance of drugs.

The first non-American website I came across when I searched for a definition was the Cambridge dictionary. It had the following: 

willingness to accept behaviour and beliefs that are different from your own, although you might not agree with or approve of them

Well exactly. Nothing pejorative about that. That's the meaning I took from Stav's post.

Mmm, that may be what UNESCO means by the word. And, used in the context of this conversation, I think some of that meaning carries through. But in my opinion, whether consciously or not, the meaning of acceptance through gritted teeth also has currency in people’s minds. 

Stav, you need to be a bit more generous in spirit.

I work in passenger transport and both staff and travellers FREQUENTLY get abuse from other travellers for no other reason than the fact that they do not conform to a perceived norm.

So this is a very relevant and legitimate corporate message for the public telling them that tolerance and empathy is important!

We have asked our employer for some time to post such messages for the travellers using our services because there is a minority who just don't get that they aren't entitled to foist their lowsy attitude on others.

Think about it!

We may live in one of the most tolerant cities in the world, but there are still plenty of atrocities, crime, abuse, prejudice, and hate. I see this sign as a gentle reminder to all of us to be as kind to each other as possible. And just as they play classical music, maybe a little gentleness with rub off onto the people passing whom need to

If they had only saved the <£20 on printing this, just think, they could shave 0.0003% off their annual budget. Shocking waste - wouldn't happen if only it were privatised. 

Even tinier: £20 would be 0.0000002% :D 

Then, Stav, you'll be thrilled to learn that this was part of a pre-pandemic campaign that probably wasn't fully rolled out due to the pandemic. A tweet from June 2020 shows the same poster. One might imagine that the campaign was commissioned in 2019 or earlier. If you want to minimise those sleepless nights, you could always submit a query to TFL to really pin down the expenditure date.

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