We’ve entered a new era in the struggle for equality, diversity and inclusion. For many it feels as if the legal gains made over the last fifty years are about to be rolled back – and with a vengeance.
The politics of those leading this backlash from the top down are blatantly ugly, openly mean, and marked by unbelievable cruelty. “Vengeance” is a key word in many of their minds and the most extreme talk is about the further marginalization, criminalization, and even elimination of those who have been members of marginalized groups in the past.
Things don’t look good, and in almost all sectors of society, major judicial and political institutions, dominant corporations, radical and loud religious sects, and the power-hungry are supporting those who lead the backlash or are too afraid to fight against it.
LGBTQ people, people of color, recent immigrants, and women are rightfully concerned about what this all means for their livelihoods, relationships, healthcare, families, and public existences.
It's no wonder that people are afraid, at times feeling hopeless, and wondering what the best strategy is in the light of what feels like a dark cloud descending upon us. So many of us have a sort of PTSD from paying attention to what seems to be crueler and more openly racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, and xenophobic talk that the Party now in charge uses to exploit its followers, and which mainstream corporate media seem to accept as just another opinion.
This is not the time to spout a toxic positivity that minimizes and even shames the real fear people have. So much of misplaced “everything will be okay” talk actually demeans those who feel a real sense of entering a dark tunnel. And many who’ve been around long enough not only remember what the bad old days were like but fear that today’s backlash could be worse.
Where, then, does our response begin while taking care of our lives and loved ones during what threatens to be dangerous times for many. Here are some thoughts to begin with that I hope are helpful without being just more trite talk.
Now is the time to focus on the present and not obsess about what might be in the future. We need to be clear about what is actually happening instead of bathing in the corporate media punditry of those who change their “expertise” on a dime but who know little more than we do about the future.
Corporate media is seldom our friend – and, remember, most social media is corporate-owned. Their customers are their corporate sponsors, their beneficiaries are their share-holders, and their product is delivering our eyeballs to their sponsors. We’ve seen again and again that their go-to method to keep those eyes watching is to promote fear and its accompanying anger.
There are some sensible things that can be done to prepare for any possibilities, but for our own health our focus needs to be on what is happening now. If we miss the present – it’s joys and challenge – we’re losing the only part of our life that is still guaranteed.
Reject taking personal responsibility for what is happening. The fact that you are the race, color, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, and/or nationality you are is not the cause of this.
The backlash wants you to believe this is your fault – it’s something you’ve done or who you are. Instead, fully embrace that bigotry is the cause, and raising guilt in the minds of the victims is not helpful – or healthy – at all.
The right-wing loves guilt, spreads it widely, invents religious justifications for it, and uses it to discourage its enemies. “Guilt, a seemingly noble expression of justice, is a useful control mechanism for those protecting their power and prejudice. And, even for the less powerful, dwelling on one’s own guilt helps us feel that we’re in control of what we probably are not.”
Make it a priority to take all the time and energy you need to make sure you are safe. Reject guilt and pressure here too.
Come “out” only where, when, and to whom you feel it’s safe. Make sure you are out to those who affirm you and have your back.
At work, don’t expect the Human Resources Department to have your back. In these days when many corporations are cutting back diversity, equality, and inclusion initiatives to align with the new anti “DEI” administration, remember, as one HR director told me, that HR works for the corporation, not the employee.
This means that no individual interaction requires you to have all the right answers or best responses ever. At times it’s more important to walk away then to continue to engage.
Create and embrace a face-to-face community of people as your primary social network. Most social media has become a place for toxic ego-defending commentary, not caring, helpful, humane, and informed interaction.
This new era has made so much of online social media safe for mean people to hide from interacting with others as real people, making it easier there to attack and demean others, spread falsehoods, promote even known false information, “own the libs,” critique those even on one’s own side in the broader fight, and destroy institutions and leaders. There is little accountability, but it can win people to one’s cause, no matter how misguided the cause is, especially if it “goes viral.”
Connect instead with those you can trust, people whom you know don’t just accept something because they saw it on the internet, people who recognize that they themselves are not experts in a field and, thus, seek out expert (not just “doing their own research” on the internet) opinion, and, most importantly, people who have the wisdom to correct the mistakes they make. One of the marks of old-fashioned, good journalism was the willingness of sources to print retractions to correct those inevitable mistakes.
Right now these reminders might seem to be little things. But, they’ll help get us through no matter what any future holds.
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