One consistent pattern in conservative behavior is that the scope of their empathy seems to be limited to personal connection. The easy example is the various homophobic politicians who made a 180 when their kids came out, and seemed to gain actual understanding in the process. That’s why this gives me some hope – it provides a personal connection to some of the experiences of systemic racism, for those who haven’t been able to see the problem. It won’t solve everything, of course, but this will be a powerful tool for persuasion, I think. Even better, it provides a jumping-off point for comparing the tiny, imagined oppression of people with MAGA hats to the actual experiences of people who aren’t white, cis, and straight.
I wish I could be that optimistic, but in my observations, it rarely works that way. You’d think that people who experience oppression would be sympathetic to others’ oppression, but as soon as they are no longer, or at least less oppressed, they’re quite happy to become the oppressor.
Likewise, it’s even worse among those accustomed to being the oppressors and view it as the natural order. Give them just a taste of what they’ve blithely dished out and it’s the end of the world. Rather than moving them to stop dishing it out, they react by doubling down to make sure they remain on top.
I’m kind of stuck between pessimism and optimism on this one.
I agree that Beau is right about the experience having those parallels and those specific types of experiences can be a really strong way to bring people together. But I don’t think it will occur very often on it’s own without outside prodding. The easy answer when confronting serious difficulties in life is to find some way to shift the blame away from yourself. Choosing to learn from it and work with other people to make the world a little better takes an investment. That can be hard to do when you’re at a personal low point.
Bullshit. The “tiny imagined oppression of people in maga hats” is a very real and very serious problem facing this country…not a hat…but that something can be labeled as something…and immediately become the recipient of such hostility. Very real issues have become weaponry. You’re trying to generate an empathy that is more akin to the Orwellian 2+2=5 concept.
This can easily be proven by the lack of empathy for say…a person wearing a hat.
You silly “oppressed” people don’t carry you experience into the field…and rise above such things…You don’t want equal. You want your turn as master of the lash…You want to revisit your…in most cases…imagined slights back on those you feel owe you a debt.
Wanna fix it? Don’t become it.