The propagandist's purpose is to make one set of people forget that certain other sets of people are human. — Aldous Huxley

The propagandist's purpose is to make one set of people forget that certain other sets of people are human.

Author: Aldous Huxley

Insight: We live in an age where it's easier than ever to forget people are people. You can scroll through thousands of comments about a group you disagree with and never once wonder about the actual humans involved—their fears, their ordinary days, the way they laugh with friends. Propaganda works this way, whether it's deliberate messaging or the ambient noise of our feeds. It reduces complex human beings to a category, a problem, an enemy. The uncomfortable part is recognizing how much this happens in everyday thinking. You might catch yourself doing it—dismissing an entire profession as greedy, assuming everyone in a certain neighborhood thinks the same way, or repeating exaggerated stories about a group without questioning them. It's not always malicious. Sometimes it's just lazy, a mental shortcut our brains take. But shortcuts have consequences. What makes this quote still sharp is that it cuts both ways. We're not just passive consumers of propaganda anymore—we're all capable of spreading it, of reinforcing the story that certain people don't deserve the same humanity we grant ourselves. Noticing when you've stopped seeing someone as fully human, then actually stopping, is harder work than scrolling past. But it's also the only real antidote.