Ahem. Now that I’ve got your attention…
Okay, cheesy tactics aside, I want to say that it’s been real inspiring to hear the reports of so many folks in the Shameless community on how they’re trying to make conscientious consumer choices, whether it’s organic local food, sweatshop-free clothing or cruelty-free makeup (or the choice not to buy at all). In a society where dollars speak louder than most everything, I think there is definitely a lot that’s worthwhile in basing your shopping decisions on how to tread more lightly on the world, environmentally and labour-wise.
At the same time, I worry that, as the Clamor expose on American Apparel put it, we often feel we can “solve the problem” of late capitalism by consuming conscientiously. But thinking of ourselves only as consumers, rather than citizens, can have some seriously detrimental effects on how we live. Early this morning I was listening to an interview with George Monbiot, environmentalist and author of Heat: How To Stop the Planet Burning. He articulated my fears extremely well, pointing out that although he has never driven a car, without any kind of political policy to back up his environment-based choice, all he’s doing is freeing up road-space for people who drive vehicles that are more consumptive than his would have been had he bought one. I may have been half asleep, but it seemed to me that his message was pretty clear: if we want to see any kind of positive change in the environment and in social life, we have to stop thinking of ourselves as only consumers and take on the burden of citizenship.
Problem is, it’s so much easier to act with your money. What with leaders we didn’t vote for (and even those we did vote for having dubious agendas at best), baffling bureaucratic processes, and political life just seeming so damn inaccessible for most of us, it’s hard not to feel helpless and frustrated, and thus retreat into an apathetic slump whenever questions on public policy arise. I’m sure a lot of us can relate to the feeling of “activist burnout”, after however many protests and petitions and letter-writings that seem to go nowhere, leaving us feeling unempowered and alienated.
I don’t have any answers here; I just know that I’d like to be more responsible as a citizen but I’m not sure how. I’d love it if some of you folks could jump in on the debate.
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three comments
While I'm happy that I live in a city like Toronto where if you want to be a conscientious consumer, there are so many stores that are willing to help, I also feel pretty disturbed by how much environmentalism has been co-opted by consumerism. The most popular solution to any problem these ideas seems to be to encourage people to buy more stuff - whether it's those stupid freakin' red Gap t-shirts, or organic popcorn, people are asked to vote with their dollars. (I actually posted about this a while ago. Not to blow my own horn, but...
http://www.shamelessmag.com/blog/2006...)
This is disturbing because it's just creating more stuff - and even if it's more sustainable stuff, it's still more stuff, which is where so many of our problems come from. And also it does seem to send quite a de-clawed message to the corporations/ entities that we are protesting.
Recently I decided that I would only drink fair trade coffee. But how does the trendy breakfast place where I went out with my friends the other day, and abstained from an unfair trade americano, know that that was what I was doing? I couldn't bring myself to say to the server, "you know, you should really get your boss to carry fair trade coffee" because that just seems like such a snotty thing to do - as genuine as my motives were. (Very upsettingly a lot of time being eco-friendly means being class-unfriendly. Because most organic/fair trade etc stuff is more expensive, and because it has the connotation of being upper-classy).
It's the same problem as with ballot-spoiling - when people spoil their ballots, how do we know if a spoiled ballot is a withering critique of our present system, or just someone who couldn't get a good grip on those tiny pencils they give you? How does Starbucks know that I don't shop with them because I resent profoundly how they move into poor neighbourhoods, effectively crying "charge!" and starting the gentrification? For all they know I'm just part of the masses of people who can't afford to pay $4 for a cup of coffee.
I guess I'm not really coming up with any helpful suggestions, I'm really just commiserating. Sigh. Maybe if we really want to make a difference, we should found an alternative magazine for teenage girls and young women, and then also set up a blog. Hey, wait a minute...
Okay I'm joking, but I am a big proponent of the idea that if the dominant culture is a big pile of poop, it can be quite the thing to go off and form your own less poopy communities, and encourage everyone to join. I also think the keyword is community - activist burnout is less of a threat if we do everything together.
Posted by thea
November 4, 2006, 6:16 PM
Hey Thea, you're right, you did blog very articulately on this subject back in the summer. I guess it's just been on my mind lately and I felt like trying to light a fire once more.
Posted by Anna
November 4, 2006, 7:20 PM
'Consume', in the world we live in, has a nasty connotation to it. The thing is that, just by existing, we consume. There are necessities of life which, regardless of your moral values or eco/labour standards awareness, you're going to have to consume at some point or another. Food and clothing are on that list (granted, you could make a more extreme choice and opt out of the clothing bit, but even then you're still going to have to eat...). We do, however, still have choices in the parameters of how we consume these things. At what point in the product's life-cycle (i.e. used clothing), and according to what standards (i.e. organic and seasonal).
I think it's important not to get stuck in this as an either/or. Complementing your consumer actions with your actions as a citizen can be much more satisfying, and effective. Not buying something (or buying more of something) feels... fine. But it often doesn't leave you feeling like you've had much of an impact. So if you're opting out of a brand or product, let the company/vendor know, and let them know exactly why (and, if possible, what the alternatives are). It doesn't have to be snotty. If you start off by asking if the coffee is fair trade, and decline if they say it's not, your reasons are obvious without you having to feel overly confrontational.
Connected to our roles as citizens, I think another important component is your job. What you do for a living, and how you do it, can be a pretty direct way of affecting the world around you. If you put yourself in a position to make the decisions, you can make good ones.
It is absolutely invaluable to work from the outside in, but too often we overlook (and don't give credit to) all the people working from the inside out. There are good people involved in politics, in bureaucracy, in media, as well as in pharmaceuticals and other often demonized industries. Corporations might be an individual on paper in some respects, but they are not an individual in practice or reality. They are made up of lots of people who get to make lots of choices and decisions that shape these entities. Policies, procedures and standards don't just pop into existence. There is a person whose job it is to write them, a person whose job it is to develop them, to research them, to enforce them, and so on. Being that person, even if it means being in the belly of the beast, can be a very powerful expression of your citizenship.
We seem to have stopped aspiring to affecting these companies, organizations, and governments from within. I'm not sure why. Why not aspire to being a responsible citizen who is a subversive, whistle-blowing, ethical, confident, valuable employee?
Posted by Catherine
November 8, 2006, 9:19 AM
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