A Long-ish Rant about the “SJW Olympics”.
As someone who has studied social issues over the last couple of years, one thing that has really stood out is the misconceived idea that the problems of prejudice and cruelty are measurable or something you can place a grade against.
Recently, I read an article from quite a mainstream media company detailing information on sexual violence, particularly towards women. I read facts that were horrifying, such as that 1 in 4 women will be victims of unwanted or coerced sexual conduct in their lifetime, and that that number is particularly prevalent in the demographic of university students, which I myself am a part of.
However, one thing that struck me was that for every three comments praising the article for its excellence in educating people in wider society about the issues faced by women, there was a seething undertone, almost entirely dominated by men, about the fact that “men face sexual violence too”, and arguing that this article erases the fact these problems are also faced by men. And they are, there is no denying that men will also experience unwanted sexual advances in their lifetime. But this article is not about that.
Another example of where I see this is in reports of young black Americans, their lives torn apart by police brutality and the prevailing existence of white supremacy in what should be a first world country, and indeed, the land of the free. However, time and time again, people will go to great lengths to ensure that this article is criticized. (Don’t you know every day that people from all ages, colours and creeds die from gunfire? Where are the articles on Mexican shootings, or Native American shootings, or Asian shootings etc, This isn’t anything special?)
Let’s move our focus towards the number of gay youths that are forcibly evicted from their homes, the number of young gay men who are forced to attend bible camps over the summer, or conversion therapy (which is still very much legal in most parts of the world) because their misguided guardians believe there is a cure. The articles describing these events do not in any way discount the struggles faced by, say people who are Transgender. But time and time again you will always read comments by trans rights activists who will argue, yes, while gay people are kicked out of their homes and are more likely to feel depressed and isolated right the way through adulthood, 50% or more of Trans people have and will attempt suicide in their lifetime.
For every act of cruelty and brutality that is publicised, it should not have to be a prerequisite that a disclaimer is added at the end of every article or read at the end of every news report that states this problem is faced by the above mentioned human binary and that demographic alone. We should not be comparing violence towards groups of peoples as things to be measured or a quantifiable grade. Prejudice is not a sport where you win medals because you have a louder voice, or a longer list of victims.
We live in an age where the news is not limited to the 30 minute intervals we receive at every meal time. We have the capability to go out and create our own articles, our own posters, videos, blogs, podcasts on what interests us and the information we want other people to know. If you feel passionate about educating people, make yourself heard or encourage others with the means to do the same. We should endeavour to highlight the less spoken for in a way that does not trivialise the horrors others have encountered or by silencing others.
It should not matter who you are, a victim is a victim, end of story.
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