This week’s Beachcomber is another one of those issues in which, without any plan by staff, stories seemed to surround a common theme: tolerance.

On the front page, islander and Washington State Attorney General’s Office employee Colleen Melody recalls the effort she and many others put into filing a lawsuit against President Donald Trump after the signing of his executive order barring immigrants and refugees from seven countries. Also in this issue, a recap of the Friends of Mukai remembrance event commemorating the 75th anniversary of Executive Order 9066, which forced the evacuation of thousands of Japanese-Americans at the start of World War II. Lastly, this Beachcomber includes a story about a West Seattle Lutheran pastor who has been teaching classes about the Koran for more than a decade and will bring the class to Vashon. Each story revolves around assumptions (people from Muslim majority countries are unsafe, Japanese-Americans cannot be trusted, the Koran is a violent book promoting terrorism) and actions made based on those assumptions that have harmed large majorities of people for the sake of safety.

These events are attempting to bring humanity back into a world that, at times, feels as if it has none. Now more than ever, it seems every issue has become partisan, with each party sticking to its side regardless of the effects on human lives. In divisive times, it’s important to remember the human aspect to every story and every action.

Just like how Executive Action 9066 tore families from their homes, the fear of Muslims in America is affecting real people, real families and has real consequences. From Trump’s recent order, to the ongoing attitudes of distrust toward Muslims and recent anti-Semitic conversations, it’s time to stop thinking of people as being part of a larger, dangerous group that is different and to use the resources at our disposal to dispel ignorance, educate others on the effects of actions taken without regard for consequence and, perhaps most importantly, treat everyone with respect and understanding. Because regardless of which side of the aisle your beliefs match up with, we’re all part of humanity and should be treated as such, as equals.