Stance
Beckett at MoMA: iPhone
“If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything”
(Malcolm X)
Our children need to know that labels have consequences; the world is not black and white.
They must also know what it means to take a stance.
And that can be complicated.
Yet the simple, categorised view of the world is no longer viable (if it ever was) and now, deep splits and fractures in our human relationships and social structures, which have lain under the surface for years have become visible.
And before us is the disquieting, confronting evidence that our system of labels is working well, in exactly the way in which it was intended.
Some of us will be able to ride out the current difficulties; insulated by wealth, status, race and ‘systemic’ advantages. We have well-rewarded, stable employment, we live in safe, secure areas with access to clean air, water and light. We see rioting and violence on our TV sets rather than in our streets. Conflict happens in ‘other’ places, to ‘other’ people.
Yet the quiet life is available only to a few; the wealthy, powerful, privileged and secure.
And the quiet life is a decision. It serves the status quo; it’s a policy of passive non-intervention that reinforces the inequity faced by the many while supporting the elite.
We need to recognise that there is no ‘other’; no ‘other’ people, no ‘other’ place. There is no black and there is no white. These labels don’t serve any of us.
I know that social change only happens slowly and the wounds that have been felt for so long will take years to heal. So, it might be too late for us, but our children need to see clearly into the complexities and interwoven webs that represent the whole of our human, social, creative, life-giving capacities.
They must act positively, progressively and with determination, for inclusion, equality, emancipation and justice.
They need to take a stance.
And you?
Your role is to help them.
Notes:
My opening quote is attributed to Malcolm X, Alexander Hamilton, Gordon A. Eadie, Irene Dunne, Peter Marshall and others. My favourite version is by Public Enemy in lyrics of ‘Harder than you Think.’
Take a few minutes to watch ‘The Danger of a Single Story’; a compelling TED talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie recorded back in 2009 and still very present.
You might also appreciate Anne Applebaum’s article in The Atlantic; “Resist the Urge to Simplify the Story.”
There is potential for activism in every decision we make, where we shop, what we buy, how we use social media, what we say in each conversation. My colleague Margaret Gearty asks us to marry a pragmatic drive for transformation with the ‘poetic’ human spirit. The ‘possible picture’, featured in her blog, is incredibly helpful.
In ‘Change’ a brilliant book by Watzlawick, Weakland and Fisch, the short chapter on ‘Terrible Simplifications’ is prophetic. “Another area is the election promises of politicians. Their programs are often replete with simplifications…[…]… If elected, these men either realise that what they promised is impossible to fulfil…[…]… or else they are forced into political brinkmanship.”
Finally…
“Hey, the cameras are on us, act like a holy man.” A lovely quote in The Book of Joy from Archbishop Desmond Tutu as the Dalai Lama pretended to choke him when the walked onto a film stage. It reminds me that there can be fun and laughter in our differences.
See Also:
