Some observations on activism

I've been thinking quite a bit about activism lately, whether I have the guts to get involved, effect change, make a difference, etc. A couple of things that have worried me are whether or not I can make the sacrifices required and whether or not other people will think I'm a 'good' activist.

Now where did those two thoughts come from? I'm not entirely how they managed to creep in but they're there. So, instead of just blithely ignoring them, let's look at them a bit closer:

1. Can I make the necessary sacrifices? My answer to that is - why should activism have to be about sacrifice? I don't see that being a martyr has made anyone truly happy or brought about significant social change. Jesus and Joan of Arc would probably agree that they never intended that their suffering should spawn thousands of years worth of self-flagellators. I'm not saying that sacrifice and suffering are unwarrented if you feel you need to do those things to get the point across. All I'm saying is that it shouldn't be expected. Ask anyone and you'll soon discover that no one enjoys being around a self annointed martyr. If that's the case, then why is the unspoken understanding around activism that activists have to be prepared to suffer and sacrifice?
   
   Probably because our entire mindset is geared towards this thought: "Nothing good is worth having or doing unless you have to suffer for it" What a load of bullshit. If I still bought into the Christian religion, that alone would be enough to make me want to leap up from in front of the altar and run far away. Why on earth should we suffer in order to better our lives? I can't imagine that a benficient and loving God would require suffering in order to gain. Oh yeah - I'm talking about Christianity - home of the angry and ass-kicking God, not a generous and loving God - my bad.
   
   Okay - back from the digression - I simply don't understand how my choosing to live out of a cardboard box would benefit someone else. From my perspective, if I really want to help, I should look at the reasons why people are forced to live in cardboard boxes to start with! That doesn't mean I wouldn't be willing to demonstrate to prove a point, just that I don't see why being an activist should be synonymous with 'be prepared to suffer'. I strongly believe that adding additional suffering (mine) and negativity to the already large pool of negative energy in this world just ain't gonna do the trick. Obviously, it could be that I just have a misconceived notion about how American society (in general) views activism - I don't know.



2. Will they think I'm a 'good' activist? This one is a bit more tricky as it involves societal thoughts around what constitutes activism and my personal ideas around activism and I feel certain they're not entirely the same. It occurs to me that society has certain expectations around people who are 'good' activists - they're outspoken, they get out there and participate in lots of demonstrations, they're angry, loud, political, passionate, opinionated, and often unwilling to listen to reason. They pick weirdo causes to support and they're all about crusading constantly! They eat, breath, sleep, and live their cause - they have no life but their cause(s).
   
   Again I say - bullshit. All these things are probably true of many people but that's not the way I want to live my life. I believe in balance and this description, to me, doesn't indicate any kind of balance. Again, we're looking at the martyr syndrome. I sacrifice my entire life to 'x' cause because I'm such a sacrificing kind of person. No wonder many people get burnt out - you give, give, give and (usually) don't get quite that much back. Problem is, no one asked you to give that much to begin with.
   
   I believe activism is all in the desire to help effect positive change. Whether that positive change comes because one soccer mom decides to buy a small Honda Civic instead of a grotesque Ford Escalade or because I choose to uproot my life, move across the country and learn about conflict resolution, or because someone decides that they're going to sit in a redwood in California to stop the logging - those are all instances of effecting some positive change. I truly believe that what can often get lost is the realization that activism can only happen one person at a time and not everyone acts the same way.
   
   Some people aren't brave enough to act publicly but they'll act privately - in the voting booth. Some people won't talk to their peers about their ideas but they'll talk to their children or their family. Some people don't know what activism is but they're kind to strangers and will give a hitchiker a ride. To me, those are all instances of activism whether they're labelled as such or not. Not everyone wants to be associated with social issues or agendas because the words 'activist' and 'activism' carry some negative connotations. If we can shift the prevailing attitudes around activism in a more positive direction, perhaps more people would be willing to participate
   
   And that's what we need to remember - everyone has opportunities to become more active and to try and change things for the better. Just because they don't stand on the roadside with a sign or picket in front of a clinic doesn't mean they don't make an effort. What I find distressing is that so many people either don't consider themselves activists or are hesitant to act on something they feel strongly about because they don't want to be labelled as 'outside the mainstream' - they want to be liked and they want to fit in. There are all kinds of activism and not all of them involve protest, resistance, and public displays of one's beliefs.
   
   So will I be a 'good' activist in the commonly understood defintion of the word - I don't know. But I do know that I'll do the best I can to turn my skills, talents, time, and energy towards finding ways to move us all towards a better place.
   

That's it for now - I feel *much* better :)