by Barry A. Liebling
At least since the beginning of the century the dominant political tribe in the United States has been the woke left. Its members control most of the educational establishment, are prominent in the largest corporations, constitute what is referred to as the legacy media, prevail in the entertainment industry, and direct the policies of the largest political party – the Democrats.
And while this tribe still maintains its top position of power and influence there is a sizable number of defectors – people who say they had enough. They are walking away – they no longer belong to the left – they claim they have seen the light.
Why are they leaving? Certainly there are multiple factors that might persuade someone to abandon an influential and powerful social organization. Sometimes the decision to leave is valid and praiseworthy, and sometimes it is not.
Consider how social pressure can work. There are people who are sensitive and passively submit to whatever the majority around them demands. A long-term leftist might take on a new job where the management and employees are mostly conservative. Instead of displaying woke attitudes and beliefs or arguing and risking penalties including being demoted or fired, the “sunshine patriot” leftist decides to comply. Of course, in this example if the world-view can be flipped that easily there is a question of how sincere the convert was previously.
Look at more interesting examples. There are cases of leftist progressives becoming enraged at the hypocrisy of their colleagues. The woke narrative is that they are for tolerance, but members of the tribe will not tolerate anyone who does not meet their demands. They say they are against racism, but they vociferously endorse DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) which is explicitly racist. They say they represent science, but refuse to allow the expression of scientific interpretations that stray from leftist orthodoxy. They say that they are for kindness, but they are unremittingly cruel towards anyone who is not onboard with their tribal rules.
So the people who are quitting leftism say, “no more” and walk away.
But why did these refuseniks wait so long? All of the problems with woke leftism they now complain about have been exhibited for all to see from the very beginning. Why do the quitters notice and become repelled now – but regarded everything as fine in the recent past?
The short answer is that for a long time they decided not to pay attention and not to think about the implications of the woke world-view. They deliberately looked away and evaded, but some event encouraged them to reevaluate their own attitudes.
The key to switching away from the left is thinking and carefully evaluating what the left represents and how it behaves. Modern Neo-Marxists maintain that objective truth and logic is an illusion. And seeking to discern what is actually real is something that a “true believer” does not do. Independently scrutinizing – instead of following the party line – can lead to “false consciousness,” and should be rejected.
Woke leftists, who might be entirely competent in other areas of their lives, avoid questioning the basis of their political beliefs. But leftists, like everyone else, possess free will and have the power to override their long-term habits and act differently. So some of them reconsider and decide to defect.
How can the proponents of individualism and liberty help woke progressives improve their lives and embrace a proper philosophical-political framework? We can encourage them to think independently about the basis and implications of their beliefs.
Notice that this is different from harshly criticizing, verbally attacking, or insulting people on the left. When anyone is insulted the default response is to fight back and meet abuse with counter-aggression. Name-calling does not promote thoughtful reflection. It might be tempting to tell virulent leftists to snap out of it, but that is not productive.
If you urge woke advocates to “think about it” how often will that exhortation be effective? Not very often. A person needs to be in the mood to be persuaded, and most people most of the time do not want to look inward and question their deeply held beliefs. But encouraging leftists to “check their premises” will encourage some to take the proper steps. And helping people switch to a benevolent, life affirming world-view is worth the effort.
*** See other entries at AlertMindPublishing.com in “Monthly Columns.” ***