![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
politically correct
May. 1st, 2010 12:51 pmToday I want to talk about one of my pet peeves: equating anti-oppression efforts with political correctness.
Feminism, anti-racism, LGBTQ activism and all anti-oppression efforts are part of a fundamentally rights seeking, justice seeking movement. They are socially revolutionary, not reformist. There is a radical core to them that can't live and let live. Can a feminist shrug off misogyny as someone "looking at things differently"? Can an anti-racist shrug off racism? (Haters gonna hate). Of course not.
Anti-oppression efforts are not politically correct; most of the time they're politically wrong. Politics is fundamentally about expediency, it's a deal-making game. It's how we negotiate competing demands, needs, ideologies and somehow make a society work. Anti-oppression efforts are a call for justice. Anti-oppression is not about "getting something for yours". It's about identifying a lack, an injustice in the fabric of society: an unrepresented, oppressed group that must make a place for itself, make it's voice heard, however it can. Anti-oppression efforts are radical politics.
Political correctness is a measure of how "good on the issues" a politician (or ordinary citizen) is on the hot topics of the day. Are you with the prevailing consensus on labour unions? Then you're politically correct. It's got nothing to do with progressiveness, or anti-oppression. Both of those are too far afield to ever be politically correct because the epicenter of public opinion is the only 'right' place to be. It's about fashion. It is no longer fashionable to be racist, sexist or ableist. And so you are no longer racist, sexist or ableist, because it is the 'right' thing to do.
Anti-oppression efforts manifest in more and less radical ways. General strikes, civil disobedience, employment equity legislation: these are all tactics adopted by anti-oppression movements. Whether striking or bargaining, the core message does not change: There is a wrong and we're damn well going to right it. The core message of the fashionable radical is LIKE ME LIKE ME LIKE ME, and for that reason, is damn easy to spot.
You know those "I judge you" secrets on F!S? If you equate anti-oppression efforts with political correctness, I judge you.
Feminism, anti-racism, LGBTQ activism and all anti-oppression efforts are part of a fundamentally rights seeking, justice seeking movement. They are socially revolutionary, not reformist. There is a radical core to them that can't live and let live. Can a feminist shrug off misogyny as someone "looking at things differently"? Can an anti-racist shrug off racism? (Haters gonna hate). Of course not.
Anti-oppression efforts are not politically correct; most of the time they're politically wrong. Politics is fundamentally about expediency, it's a deal-making game. It's how we negotiate competing demands, needs, ideologies and somehow make a society work. Anti-oppression efforts are a call for justice. Anti-oppression is not about "getting something for yours". It's about identifying a lack, an injustice in the fabric of society: an unrepresented, oppressed group that must make a place for itself, make it's voice heard, however it can. Anti-oppression efforts are radical politics.
Political correctness is a measure of how "good on the issues" a politician (or ordinary citizen) is on the hot topics of the day. Are you with the prevailing consensus on labour unions? Then you're politically correct. It's got nothing to do with progressiveness, or anti-oppression. Both of those are too far afield to ever be politically correct because the epicenter of public opinion is the only 'right' place to be. It's about fashion. It is no longer fashionable to be racist, sexist or ableist. And so you are no longer racist, sexist or ableist, because it is the 'right' thing to do.
Anti-oppression efforts manifest in more and less radical ways. General strikes, civil disobedience, employment equity legislation: these are all tactics adopted by anti-oppression movements. Whether striking or bargaining, the core message does not change: There is a wrong and we're damn well going to right it. The core message of the fashionable radical is LIKE ME LIKE ME LIKE ME, and for that reason, is damn easy to spot.
You know those "I judge you" secrets on F!S? If you equate anti-oppression efforts with political correctness, I judge you.