Malice versus ignorance

I maintain a cumulative collection of notes on my smartphone, ranging from suggested restaurants to which I'll likely never venture, to poignant parts and pieces from news articles; content I believe will one day require certain reference, and often, it does. 

While recently searching for a snippet of data I remembered saving from a research paper, I rediscovered a quote offered by a friend – an anecdote of his mother's: 

"Never attribute to malice what can be adequately explained by ignorance." 

I read the words over and over, welcoming their impression. This guidance seems particularly meaningful at this point in time in U.S. history.

Perhaps now, more than ever, granting ourselves the empathetic reframing of perspectives on the actions of some is necessary; intentional empathy as an act of self-preservation.