- Re: Sorry, RG, gotta differ old bean Archived Message
Posted by margo
on July 30, 2019, 10:53 am, in reply to "Sorry, RG, gotta differ old bean"
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I agree. it's systemic, not individual. We live in a very imperfect world and most of us are implicated and compromised: we have to speak out from where we are. I see XR Rebellion's Greta Thunberg is going over to America for 8 months: instead of flying she's sailing over in a yacht with Princess Caroline's son. Good for her, she's raising awareness of air travel pollution - but her pure stance shouldn't drive people away from speaking about climate - because they feel guilty in comparison, guilty about having to catch planes - either for work or to visit family. I'm reminded of a very purist anti-apartheid activist (white guy) from South African university days, pre-Mandela's release: he refused to bath or shower because poor people in the townships and bantustan areas had no running water. In solidarity with them, he washed once a week in a zinc tub on a pavement. He starved himself of food in solidarity with the poor, walked everywhere and took no transport. He preached his principled stance to other university and intellectual activists, shaming them for having lower standards to himself; shaming them as 'sell-outs' and 'hypocrites' who should rather remain quiet if they couldn't argue off a pure platform. A very smart economics student, his arguments were compelling and strident. What happened is that he put many people off joining the anti-apartheid movement, because he pushed such an unattainable standard that many felt that getting involved was 'useless' or risky because they weren't worthy enough and risked getting 'shamed' for their 'compromised' lifestyles if they spoke out, etc. Much later on, once Mandela was released and X graduated with his doctorate, he went on to a high-flying job in a world bank based in an American city, where he still lives in a swanky apartment and works on important business: encouraging African debt. An ex-girlfriend of his noted years later: "it didn't matter who X really was, the effect of his purist message on others is clear to see now, with hindsight." |