So, a friend of mine who is really hardcore on CRT recently made a pitch to Christians on social media arguing that privilege is like original sin, and how we need to acknowledge it and try to make the world a better place to atone for it. I recently made a similar comparison in my own debates after someone used these politics manipulatively to tell me that I needed to make privilege politics my #1 priority and if I'm not actively anti-racist, I'm racist.
Honestly, these pitches backfire on me. Here's the thing. I'm an ex-Christian free thinker. My blog started in part to discuss political views that I learned after my deconversion from Christianity. And while I'm no longer an atheist where I'm cool with "God" and spiritual and all, I still have a very strong distaste toward Christianity. In large part because it is an abusive and manipulative belief system that is akin to literal brainwashing. In telling people that they are sinful, in need of salvation, and that the way to be saved is to accept Jesus Christ as their personal savior, the people telling them this can then use their dedication to this new belief system to control them. The purpose of the sin and salvation story is to break people down so the people who pull the strings can build them back up into what they want them to be.
CRT works the same way culturally. By getting people to acknowledge privilege, they intend to belittle their identity, breaking them down and building them up into good little activists who don't think for themselves, but bend the knee to privilege politics. And it's sickening. It's emotionally manipulative, and as an ex-Christian free thinker is a huge reason I have such a distaste for these tactics. I see through this and as such I tend to push back whereas many let themselves be pushed around by these people. This isn't right.
Now, that's not to say anything about the validity of privilege. I want to make that clear. I believe intellectually CRT has a lot to offer the debates surrounding systemic racism and the like. But, these politics need to stop being used to bully and browbeat white people into line. No, I dont have to listen to you. No, I don't have to give up my politics on the altar of white liberal guilt. And anyone who has a serious expectation that I will has another thing coming.
I nominally support these causes, but don't expect me to get down in the nitty gritty and be an activist for you guys. As you can tell, I spend far more time complaining about you guys trying to bully me, than advocating your causes. Why? Because this stuff backfires. This kind of maniulation goes against my brand and what I feel morally obligated to do isn't to agree and bend the knee, but to call out abusive behavior as I see it. Obviously freedom of thought matters more to me than systemic racism. A lot of things matter more to me than systemic racism. And that's okay. While systemic racism is an important issue to address, it's not MY important issue. Everyone is going to be an activist for their own causes. And that's okay. Some people are driven to social justice politics. I'm driven to basic income, medicare for all, pushing my own new, unique ideology, and advocating freedom of thought as I see it. I'm not going to bend the knee to other peoples' causes. Just like they shouldn't necessarily bend the knee for mine. I try to work with others by finding common ground, not bullying people into submission or expecting them to make my issues as their #1. I know full well most people aren't gonna be UBI activists. And that's fine. Im fine with passive agreement over active opposition. And you know what? If you work with me, I can probably work with you. Thats how coalition building actually works. It's not a my way or the highway proposition. You gotta meet people where they are. Just saying.
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