So long friends
I want to thank everyone who follows this blog for participating in an optimistic vision of a future we can all love and cherish together.
This blog began as a Solarpunk themed blog, it was a movement I fell head over heels in love with. I’ve always believed in a future where systemic changes to our relationships with consumption and ecology allowed for a more integrative approach to solving climate change challenges.
Unfortunately, Solarpunk appears to have been co-opted by extremists in the past year who silence dissenters using aggressive banning and reporting policies more reminiscent of a fascist hellscape than of a forward progressive movement that values scientifically informed decision making over the personal values of the leadership.
We stand at a critical crossroads as a species, a place where we can embrace the diversity of all peoples from race to religion to political ideology or we can go to a place where we can fall further into dogmatic ideological principles that thrive and grow on a warmongers appetite for combative otherness.
The self appointed leaders of the Solarpunk communities online have chosen the latter and lost the vision. Time and time again I watch as they abuse their power as community leaders to placate their own beliefs. I watch as they have turned their leadership and voices into shallow businesses, advertising their own works for money and disrespecting the very foundations and ideology of this movement. I’ve watched as they endlessly promote themselves and their own personal endeavors for fleeting moments of glory in the spotlight rather than put in the hard work to advocate for policy changes that create a tangible difference in the world.
Solarpunk under these leaders has become a campaign for their own self-grandeur where they expect unquestioned loyalty to their opinions and for the people to financially support their interests regardless of its relationship to the cause.
I cannot participate in this movement anymore. I will not condone, believe in, or appreciate a dogmatic system that devalues the opinions of the “other” simply by the merit of them opposing the leaderships beliefs. There is no justice in a system that dismisses the values of others without proof that the “other” is wrong. The phrase “I don’t agree.” followed by banning people is not a defense for a position, it is a dictatorship.
I have fought for too long against this. I am tired. The solarpunk that once was all those years ago is now dead, corrupted by greed and hubris. I will continue to look for alternatives and will let you know if I find any.
Good luck out there and remember that nothing you blog about here matters unless you’re doing something about it in the real world. Change starts with a direct dialogue between you and politicians.
