(Source: www.flicker.com)
Something has changed with the left. Originally, the left represented the opposition to injustice and the advocation of equality. Now, what we see is nothing more than a regression that seems to desire the disposing of the very values leftists have fought for over the years.
We have witnessed an astonishing transition from the days of true social justice warriors, who bravely took to the streets in opposition to the Vietnam War, to a bunch of self-victimised teenagers, constantly in need of protection, safe spaces, and not having their wonderful world views challenged.
Consider this, leftists today will generally proclaim that gender is a social construct, that there is no difference between men and women. Yet, in the same breath, they will condemn the lack of female representation in the workforce. Do they not see the circular logic in play here? Do they not see the inconsistency?
It may seem baffling that no mainstream media is willing to oppose this self-contradictory logic, but it is, in fact, understandable. Members of the left are aggressively quick to decry any contrarian view. They will seek to shut down the voices of the opposition and rob them of their rights to speak their mind lest they risk ‘triggering’ the pampered brats that roam the streets today. We’ve witnessed this countless times, with the disallowing of conservatives to speak across college campuses (particularly in the US), restricting actual intellectual discourse regarding the issues of today.
In today’s world, the content of one’s argument is meaningless. It’s where you lie on the oppression scale that matters most. A new form of racism and bigotry; if you’re a heterosexual, cisgendered, white male, you are an oppressor and your opinion is of less value than the oppressed. If your opinions conflict with others’, and you have the audacity to state them, then you’re denying their ‘experiences and feelings’. We’ve driven ourselves into a post-truth era, wherein facts are decayed and rendered useless.
Out of fear, people are now unable to speak up against the hostile ideologues who associate themselves with radicalised, political campaigns thats members constantly allow sentiment to overcome facts (such as third-wave feminism or the Black Lives Matter movement). The herd mentality is ruling millennials and, due to the intimidation factor prevalent in the left, it seems that matters will only get worse.
I don’t argue for any specific ideology. I try to distance myself from both, liberals and conservatives. What I advocate for is the need for actual intellectual discussion, rather than this imposed limitation on free speech. One must remember, if offended by anything spoken by another, that it is not only the right of the speaker to speak, but the audience retain their right to listen. Meaning, you can’t, or shouldn’t silence any voice that contradicts what you believe, or hurts your feelings. As John Stuart Mill said in his wonderful philosophical work, On Liberty : “If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.”.
This article was written by HC Waseda Guest Writer, Ahmed Juhany.