6/14/2020: True equality: all or not at all
Hello, dear ones. I hope this message finds you well and safe, as our world continues its roiling, rollicking, reactions to the strife caused by the pandemic and police violence. Our hearts break with each new act of violence, and each new demonstration of the corrupt administration's callous disregard for so many of its own country's citizens. (There's a list below, because documenting these things feels important. But it's not the main topic of this message.)
I feel late and slow on the realization I am sharing with you. For the last four years, I've been hearing and reading a lot about intersectionality. And, I'm embarrassed to say, I interpreted it as a kind of simple alliance: like-minded folks, sharing a dedication to progressive, inclusive values, working together instead of allowing ourselves to be divided.
All well and good. But as I muddle through the events of the last few weeks, heart regularly broken, it occurred to me that my understanding might be correct in a way, but it has been far too shallow.
To go deeper is to realize that intersectionality is a reality, a literal truth: For ANY to be equal, ALL must be equal.
Our cultural narrative holds up examples of those who have "overcome" obstacles to join the one percent as a kind of mythology: hard work can compensate for systemic inequality. See? So-and-so did it. Raised themselves up by their bootstraps. Never gave up. Persisted. A mythology that claims the only variable that distinguishes "success" from "failure" is the amount of effort and determination given by the individual. (Or, depending on the situation, the level of compliance with the laws and norms of the power structure. Obey the laws, and you can succeed. Disobey, and you give up all rights.)
This mythology casts into shadow all the other variables that influence economic success and political power: ethnicity, gender, LGBTQ identity, poverty, etc. It attempts to seduce those of us with privilege to see it as something we earned, rather than something given to us. It tries to mask this literal truth: we are all excluded from full equality and full participatory democracy, as long as any of us are.
Equality is by definition all-in. It is binary: it is present, or it is absent. We don't have levels of equality - but we do have levels of privilege. And yes, our individual paths vary. Some of us make it farther than others. We do work hard, and we do enjoy some of the fruits of our labors. We should have pride in our accomplishments. This does not negate the reality, however, that many of our fellow humans are systematically de-privileged. Withholding full equality from anyone prevents full equality for everyone. A system that privileges a few, an elite, ensures that we all live in inequality.
I am sure many of you realized this long ago, and I thank you for your patience as the rest of us get there, slowly but surely. And as always, I am grateful for your company on the journey of working for true equality for all.
With love,
Liz
A partial list of this administration's recent actions:
The administration used this time, during Pride Month and on the anniversary of one of the most heinous acts of violence against LGTBQ folks, to strip protections for trans people from health care laws.
The administration used this time to strip enforcement from more key environmental regulations that protect people from poison in the air and water.
https://www.sierraclub.org/press-releases/2020/04/sierra-club-steps-watchdog-after-trump-s-epa-uses-covid-19-crisis-stop
The administration used this time to claim it has protected the country from the pandemic with a flawless response: "We made every decision correctly."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-coronavirus-pandemic-jobs-law-and-order/2020/06/05/3248ce5e-a747-11ea-b619-3f9133bbb482_story.html
The administration continues to promote militarized policing and violent overreaction to largely peaceful protests, while avoiding dealing with the systemic racism it promotes.
https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2020/06/11/us/ap-us-america-protests-seattle-zone.html?searchResultPosition=1