Protest4 has gone live. Well worth checking out, and I think an important way forward. Particularly in the light of recent thoughts I have been having on the impact of individualism in current culture and the impact this has on the possibility of social change. A quote I have held close to my heart for a while is from Fiske who said
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“The people are neither cultural dupes nor silenced victims, but are vital, resilient, varied, contradictory, and, as a constant source of contestation of dominance, are a vital social resource, the only one that can fuel social changeâ€?
However the question remains what has the impact of a declining meta narrative and the increase of individualism been on this? Can people still be the social resource for change?
My tentative answer is “They can be if they want to be”. I think the individualism is a big deal as everyone is too busy and occupied with trying to get their own little lives sorted that they don’t have the energy or the vision to see the big picture of society and structures that need change. Or maybe people are in a place where they’re too lethargic and placated and despondant to think that they can be a resource for change.
So, while I believe that people can still be the rescource for change, maybe the question we should be asking is what needs to change about people’s view of life in order for them to realise that they can be? How can we empower them to do that?
I think the VIEW word is the right word, and an important factor. The challenge of changing someones view within a culture of individualism is a hard one.
I guess because the only way we really change our points of view and our thinking is through our relationships and interactions with those who think differently… which in an individulalistic culture doesn’t happen so much?