Western cultures, and Americans in particular, have a long history of individual and collective activism. I remember growing up, a child of the 80s, learning about all the various social and political movements in our history, and how they changed our country for the better. I admire many of the people who fought for civil rights, and what they have achieved. I am proud of my country’s heritage of continuous learning and evolution, and activism has been a major part of that process.
Fast forward nearly 50 years to the 2020s and the American sociopolitcal culture is as vibrant as ever. The larger movements that form the cultural battleground today tend to be progressive in nature, focused on systemic racism, climate change, gender ideology, sexual activism, and female-empowerment. But now that we have had nearly a century in some cases to evaluate these movements, I am decidedly less enthusiastic of their current focus. It seems that activism in America has become its own end goal; activism for the sake of activism. While there are sincere and legitimate core concerns in these movements, they have transformed into tornadoes of grievance and division, sweeping up vast swaths of young people who might better serve our society by simply being fair, kind, productive, and optimistic members of their community. But instead, they have joined an increasingly angry, hostile, and militant army of global activists intent on unrestricted and unscrutinized “progress”.
I was also young and idealistic. I held socialist views, and I criticized some of the shameful chapters in our history. But then I grew up, traveled the world, created a company with my own hard-earned money, and employed people. People from all different economic, racial, and ethnic backgrounds in a country with a long socialist past. And none of that stuff that I thought was so important as a student mattered because… none of it mattered. What mattered was that I provided employment, security, and opportunity for hundreds of families. How does climate justice have anything to do with my software company?
As the head of an established service agency and an aspiring startup, I have been approached a few times about throwing my hat into these various rings. I have been asked to take a public stance on political issues, or to make hiring decisions that align with progressive values. I have been encouraged to incorporate quotas and reservations for “minorities” to attract “the right investors”. And for some reason, I am constantly targeted by organizations to add my name to pledges for “climate justice” and various other causes that are irrelevant to my company.
Some might say, well you are happy to globalize your products and services, why won’t you globalize your concerns? I believe that one can care too much about things one has little to no control over. I have no control over climate change, for example. But I certainly take care of whatever environment I am in. I do not pollute my direct environment, and am always happy to lend a hand to clean up a mess. When it comes to racism, I do not see any around me, and if I encounter any kind of unfairness or injustice, I follow my conscious. I do care. I just choose to care about the things around me.
I trust people.
I believe that most people are fundamentally good, and want to exercise goodwill and peace to their brothers and sisters. I reject the idea that I need to internalize and implement global ideas I cannot myself directly validate into my life and my business. I do not need to hoist flags, wear pins, or hold seminars for my staff because I assume they are good people already. As their employer, my only objective is to hire the right people with the right skills, and look after their job by making the right decisions about my company. If I choose the right people, my company and everyone in it will prosper. If I do not, we won’t. I know that because it’s my lived experience.
I don’t trust global political entities.
While I largely trust individuals to do the right thing, I do not trust global groups to do the same. These global groups are highly politicized, affiliated with national and global political action committees I am suspicious of. We can see with the recent debacle with Black Lives Matter, who collected $90 million from good-hearted people with positive intentions, that shenanigans happen.
And it is certainly possible that the message conveyed through large international organizations and pressure groups is inconsistent with my common sense about my own role. I am immediately suspicious of any group that would have me consume and regurgitate their narrative. Why do you need me? What exactly can I do, except add one more voice to your social pressure groups? I do not want to join these armies. I feel like a fool running errands. Or worse yet, an activated pawn in some global campaign for power.
I will support local initiatives that help real people I know. Do I think racism is bad? Of course I do. Do I want our planet to remain clean, healthy, and inhabitable? Yes. And do I want people to live their life fully, however that looks? Absolutely. But do I need to sign pledges, rehearse slogans, and invite activist groups into my life and organization? No, absolutely not. I think being a good person and being an activist are two very different things. While they can overlap, they do not necessarily.
I have to do what I believe is good in my life, and that means being good in my daily life, around the people I know and encounter. Where I live 98% of my neighbors are Hindus living in traditional rural communities and families. Aside from us foreigners and a few Muslim and Bhutanese families, the culture is Hindu. One might say there is a Hindu privilege here, but why? It is a beautiful place, and they have been nothing but welcoming in allowing me to settle down and enjoy this beautiful land and culture.
I do not want to get involved in these global concerns. Frankly, I think most of them have been infiltrated by political agents. I believe that concern is best served and consumed locally. We have problems with water and forest fires in my area. And no, I do not tie those to some changing climate: there are very real solutions to these problems right here. Scarcity of water has always been an issue, and rainwater harvesting and water conservation are two of the most appropriate responses. And most of the forest fires are inadvertently started by villagers who burn the blanket of pine needles that covers the ground and chokes the young grass and vegetation from growing. They start small, controlled fires so this vegetation can grow and feed their goats and cows, but they often get out of control and cause damage. This is a matter of awareness, and western-style climate activism will yield little to no results at my level.
As a world traveler, American society is by far the most tolerant place I have ever been and I appreciate that. But I would like to see these global movements of concern that often originate in America dissolve, freeing up all those anxious individuals to focus their concerns more locally.
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