- cross-posted to:
- transgender@lemmy.ml
- cross-posted to:
- transgender@lemmy.ml
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Hm, I agree with the author in how far too much anti-wokeness can repel voters. But I have to disagree with the overall analysis of wokeness by the author. They make it seem like wokeness is this policing of others based on “niche concerns”, not only for conservative politicians but also for the author themselves*. Imo this sounds like someone complaining about SJWs and saying how petty fights people put on when they are in fact criticizing racism, sexism, homophobia, etc. Are these niche concerns? No, obviously this is about how we structure society itself and about power struggles in it. It is obviously annyoing when big corporations use pinkwashing etc to sell more, but the same is true for climate change. I wouldn’t call climate change a niche concern either, just because many corporations and individuals try to use our concern for their own benefit.
And regarding the policing: this isn’t anything new. Cis-heteronormativity has existed for a few hundreds of years in western societies. As a queer trans woman I’m policed in the streets everyday by all kinds of people. If people now feel attacked when they cannot behave as misogynistic, racist, ableist, etc as before, well then this shows the slow shift of who has power in society. Many cishet men are frightened by the prospect of a more egalitarian society because that would mean losing power over people.
* I get how the author could try to speak from the perspective of a potential trump/desantis voter and would therefore frame wokeness in such a way. My point here is, however, that the author clearly argues that even for themselves the ideals behind wokeness are wrong and unimportant.
perhaps its dominant meaning now is a kind of progressive culture-war posturing characterized by language policing, censoriousness, automatic deference based on personal identity, and moralizing about individual behavior.
Yeah, the author here isn’t even trying to say “this is what the Right thinks, but that’s not what it’s really about.” They aren’t trying to qualify this statement at all, and in fact go on to basically say “yeah, this is pretty much what it is.”
And I absolutely agree with what you said about people thinking this is an issue of niche concerns that “SJWs” have become militant about. The fundamental nature of my being, and that of entire communities of people, isn’t a niche concern. It comes from such a gross position of privilege for people think “you’re just making everything political! stop trying to tell me I’m being mean by being a bigot!” when our entire existence has been politicized. White cishets are trying to set the parameters of the conversation, pretend they are the default, and attacking anyone to dares suggest people could exists in a framework outside their narrow worldview.
More fucking Centrist bullshit from people who see this as an entirely academic discussion. “One side wants to eradicate entire groups of people, while the other says we should fight for equality, equity, tolerance, and empathy. But really, isn’t the latter group getting out of hand with their demands?”
I guess it is not much different than people calling women “hysteric” if they dared to complain about how they were treated. Or people calling me “too extreme/radical” when I went vegan over a decade ago. It’s just so lazy of them. As you said, because they see themselves as the default they don’t even have to use their brain before dismissing any perspective different from their own. It is so frustrating the power people have when they are in this default position. Any arguments you give them are just repelled by their ignorance.
And the thing is, I actually would like to live in a world where everyone can be happy and live freely, not only a select few. But I guess the logic of privileged people is that we have to be like them and that we, if we one day get to power, would like to oppress them just as they oppress us now (I think there is a video by F.D. Signifier where he explains this in more detail).
