Most of the time, ignorance has a negative connotation behind it, associated with being “immature” and “uneducated.” But the rose-colored glasses that are a natural part of ignorance are a blessing in disguise for many people. 

     Growing up, I was always seen as “mature for my age.” My mom’s best friend used to call

me “the 40 year old 10 year old.” I carried myself with a level of maturity and understanding on topics that kids my age normally didn’t have. I went to school with my “miss me yet” Obama t-shirt and a mouthful of opinions about the immigration policies of the 2016 Trump administration, the BLM protests throughout the country, and how we handled the COVID-19 pandemic in my small conservative hometown. But I did not choose to care and be affected at an emotional level by these controversial topics; I cared because I was not allowed to be ignorant.

     Whenever you open Instagram or TikTok, while you scroll, there is a chance that you may come across a news story. The headline could be ‘ICE Is Cracking Down on Chicago,’ or ‘Hamas Says It Agrees To Release All Hostages In Gaza’, and you choose to scroll, making it fade into just a vague blur of ‘ICE …Chicago.’ and “Hamas …Hostages … Gaza.’ But this willed ignorance isn’t something that all people have the ability to have. 

     Being able to scroll past the latest news on immigration policies without seeing your family and friends in the faces of the people affected, writing it off as “something that doesn’t affect me because I am young and in high school,” is something that comes with ignorance.

     The ability to not see yourself in every headline, every policy, every event is a privilege — the privilege of ignorance. So we shouldn’t see the word in such a negative light. Because to be ignorant is a privilege that not everybody can have. A privilege that fades over time with experience and empathy. A privilege that should not be taken for advantage. Ignorance truly is bliss.