Photo credit: Mickey Z.
Mickey Z. -- World News Trust
Nov. 18, 2015
“Reading the news and it sure looks bad. They won't give peace a chance. That was just a dream some of us had.” (Joni Mitchell)
I’ve written 13
books. My work appears in at least 25 anthologies (I’ve lost count), and
has been translated into maybe eight or 10 languages. From print to web
to chapbooks and far beyond, I’ve authored tens of thousands of
articles, essays, poems, blogs, social media posts, etc. and I’ve helped
produce a wide array of publications -- from photocopied zines to
newsstand glossies.
I’ve done talks
and lectures and workshops and panels and teach-ins from coast to coast
in eclectic venues from tiny community centers to major universities --
with audiences ranging in size from single digits to several thousand.
I’ve also appeared on TV, radio, web-based media, and have been
live-streamed more times than even the NSA knows.
People have
written plays about me, poems about me, term papers about me, scathing
critiques about me, and some have traveled hundreds of miles just to
witness me give a 40-minute talk.
From 2011 to
2014, I attended (and photographed) more NYC-area protests, demos,
rallies, marches, sit-ins, teach-ins, die-ins, parades, outreach events,
occupations, etc. than any other activist. Hands down. No contest. And
it would be frighteningly fruitless to attempt listing the full range of
social justice issues and concerns those events covered.
On a personal
level, I’ve followed a plant-based diet for more than two decades and
haven’t owned a car for nearly as long. I rarely (if ever) fly, don’t
have children, try to shop “responsibly” (and often rely on used goods),
and generally do my best (in vain) to line up my behavior with my
values.
I could go on.
Trust me. The incomplete list I just typed out is the proverbial tip of a
privileged iceberg, but this is not a bragging session. Not even close.
Rather, I offer the above catalogue solely to help drive home my
primary point: All my activist work has made no sustainable difference at all.
Before any of you go into reassuring mode, let me say thanks in advance and also add this: All your activist work has made no sustainable difference at all.
Of course, I’m not saying that absolutely nothing
has been accomplished. Many of us, on a micro level, have made a
difference but if that’s what you wish to focus on and debate, please
count me out. Start your five-hour flame war someplace else.
What I am
saying is that all the signs, songs, petitions, costumes, puppets,
performances, chants, holding hands in the shape of a peace sign, memes,
videos, conventions, banners, meetings, articles, books, forums,
photographs, candlelight vigils, conferences, symbolic arrests, being
the change we wish to see, and so on have not created the spark needed
to ignite a successful, viable movement for social change.
As a result, we (read: all life on earth) are losing. We are getting wiped out, figuratively and literally. We are fast running out of time.
If you’ve read
any of my work, you already know I could go all hyperlink on you right
now -- offering endless documentation to back up my downbeat diagnosis.
But if my relentless self-education hasn’t helped create change yet, why
choose that tactic now?
Nope, all I’ve got this time is a question: When
will we collectively admit we’ve been tragically ineffective in our
efforts and transparently self-sabotaging in our unwillingness to
confront our failures?
The moment we
consider finally trying something new -- for starters, critical
introspection -- I believe we’ll finally stand a chance of seeing the
situation for what it is: an emergency, a crisis, a time for bold new
ideas and immediate action. And that tactic has the potential to make all the difference in the world.
#shifthappens
Mickey Z. is the author of 13 books, most recently Occupy these Photos: NYC Activism Through a Radical Lens. Until the laws are changed or the power runs out, you can “like” his Facebook page here and follow his blog here. Anyone wishing to support his activist efforts can do so by making a donation here.
"Activist Wonders If He’s Made A Difference" by Mickey Z. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at http://worldnewstrust.com/activist-wonders-if-he-s-made-a-difference-mickey-z.
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