There are many different sides you can be on in life. Republican or Democrat. Vegan or Carnivore. Religious or Atheist. Categories we put ourselves into that seem to set each one of us apart from the “other side.” In today’s political climate and with the advancement of technology (such as the growing popularity of social media), unity between humans has never been so obviously shaken than it is today.
But a Danish television station ad is taking an aim at that division.
A commercial spot for TV2 Denmark opens onto a soundstage that has clear outlined boxes on the ground. Groups of people make their way across the stage, stepping into these areas that have been marked to define them. High earners versus those living paycheck to paycheck. Farmers versus people who have never seen a cow. Life-long Danes versus those who have recently moved to Denmark.
Us versus them.
But soon, an announcer begins asking questions:
“Who was the class clown?”
“Who loves to dance?”
“Who feels lonely?”
And something amazing happens. People begin to step out of their boxes that “define them,” and begin to uproot the “Us versus Them” narrative altogether. Until finally, the last question is asked: “Who loves Denmark?”
Every single participant stepped out of their boxes cohesively. The ad ends with “Maybe there’s more that brings us together than we think.”
The ad is a reminder – on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which uncoincidentally was the day the spot was released – that our perceived labels don’t define us. That if we look below the surface, we find how similar our narratives are to those we think are completely different.