Hate is Always Hate
When anger leads to hate, it doesn’t matter if the anger is justified.
Anger exists for a reason: to tell you that something is wrong. For many people in the world, systemic injustice has created a deeply seeded anger, the sort of anger that doesn’t go away easily because it’s constantly reinforced by oppressive systems and actual, daily, violence.
There are two types of problems at the systemic level: those problems inherent to the society a whole, and those which are systemic but targeted at (or which disproportionately effect) a smaller group within the broad population.
As a global community, the deepest systemic problems relate to power structures. The difference in power affects everyone, everywhere. Because a few people have amassed the sort of power that allows them to decide the fate of others, on a whim, the society as a whole becomes sick.
People feel pain when their power is taken away from them. When someone loses their power, they feel anger because to lose one’s power to someone else is a violent act. Losing one’s power feels wrong, and that creates anger. Without some method for correcting this, anger grows.
A healthy community will take instances of power abuse seriously, and will aim to correct those abuses. Not by gaining power to harm those who have already done harm, but by seeking actual communion and reconciliation.
If someone is hurt, it is not enough to hurt the one who hurt them. Under certain conditions, this might alleviate the feeling of imbalance. If someone is beaten up, being able to face their attacker, and defeat them, might be exactly what is needed… but it is far more likely to create a new cycle of pain in the world.
Anger is there because something is wrong in the world, so it must be used like a guidepost for compassionate action. You can fight without focusing on the anger. Without becoming embroiled in it. The angrier you are, the more likely you are to create new conditions for pain in the world. But, if you recognize your anger simply as a warning sign, and then apply yourself to understanding how the situation can be resolved without further involving your anger, then you have the chance to create real change.
When anger leads to hate, it doesn’t matter if the anger is justified. The hate will consume the justice of your rage, and lend itself only to the creation of more worldly suffering. No political gains, no social gains, no humanitarian improvement, can be gained from anger that has been spoiled by hate.