Why the reluctance to be exposed to contrarian perspectives is leading to the end of growth and the destruction of a free society.
“There's no denying that Modi Sarkar had done a sterling job with the infrastructure. I see a huge improvement in highways, smooth and spacious all over.” Tweeted a journalist known for her vicious criticism of the government.
The responses from her followers were
instant.
“Really?”
“Disgraceful”
“Didn’t she support Modi in 2014?”
“This is the true face of Indian
liberals, they support a fascist as long as they get ‘smooth and spacious’
roads for their luxury vehicles”
"Typical upper cast mentality"
“Sold out!”
“B$%^&”
“Unfollowed”
“Blocked”
---
“Unpopular opinion, demonetization was
a catastrophic failure that hurt the economy badly” Tweeted an individual known
to be supportive of the government.
The responses from his followers were
prompt again.
“Really?”
“I always knew you could never trust
him.”
“Didn’t he praise Manmohan Singh and
Kejriwal once?”
“This is the true face of Indian Right
Wing. Placing self before the nation. Perhaps he lost a lot of his ill-gotten wealth during demo”
“Such abhorrent notions expose these
people for who they are”
“M$%^^#% F!*#%”
“Unfollowed”
“Blocked”
In minutes both posts were deleted and
feeble explanations were offered. A pledge of admiration to followers and respect for the ideology was declared but to no avail, the damage was done. Quite soon the explanations were deleted and the
individuals took a sabbatical from the ‘toxicity' of social media as they lost thousands of
followers. The partisans on either side made sure they screenshot that would
serve as a reminder is the individuals attempted to ‘stage a comeback’.
‘That’s just social media, a noxious
cesspool where each seeks to attain prominence by being disgracefully outrageous
and savagely partisan’ will be the response. But alas this attitude is spreading
all over and rather rapidly.
What about news outlets? The Wire will
certain lose tons of subscribers if they did a series of a news story that may be
fact-based but presents the Modi government in a positive light. Similarly
Republic will undoubtedly lose viewers if they did a series of debates that is
critical of the Modi government.
Beyond our new media choices, there
are instances where individuals were ‘canceled’ for perceived
unconventional opinions or opposing political or
ideological leanings. They are cut off from social circles, they could be
sacked from jobs, marriages are wrecked, and deeply cordial
relations are severed.
“I cannot possibly see myself having
any contact or relations with a <Fill in the blank>. I wouldn’t even know
how to converse with a <Fill in the blank>, we have nothing in common. I’ve
reached a point in my life where I have decided to purge individuals such as
this <Fill in the blank>” is often the claim made in defense.
The blank could be filled with
‘Congress supporter’, ‘AAP member’, ‘BJP Supporter’, ‘bigot’, ‘Nazi’, ‘racist’,
‘communal’, ‘liberal’, ‘Marxist’ ‘communist’, ‘sexist’, ‘homophone and
‘deplorable’. Quite often it is for somebody you agree on most of the time but he has dared to transcend to say something that you consider unacceptable just once. The epithets could get more colorful as we go do the dark road of
partisanship.
This individual you are referring to could even be a childhood friend or a relative with whom you have grown up with but you just cannot muster any contact, despite having so much in common merely because of an opinion.
Gradually you stop being exposed to new ideas and diverse views. You watch news channels, read newspapers, watch movies, join WhatsApp groups, chose friends and even relatives merely to have your biases confirmed. You begin looking for purity even in that group, you develop a sub-group within and another sub-group within. Your world gets narrower and narrower.
Soon you start to look for reasons to be offended. You begin to dissect innocuous jokes, remarks, movies, and books for offensive content. You enjoy the comfort and the chimes of the echo chambers. This relentless adherence to a convention is the most dependable way to halt growth. If you the one who proudly proclaims to not discuss politics with certain people in order to maintain friendships, you fall into the same group.
Thus despite living in a democracy, you
build a cocoon around yourselves that that makes your world no different from a
totalitarian state where only one opinion is allowed and any contrarian
perspective is banned or worst even banished. You are convinced that what we
think is right, we know that morality is on our side. You feel righteous and
feel no pressing need for any debate. You have terminated freedom of expression
from our circles and are living in our own mini North Koreas.
Despite this being very basic, it is
worth reiterating that freedom of expression is quite simply the most important
tenet of a functioning democracy. This includes the right to opine, criticise, offend, insult, ridicule, and satirise. The object could
be anything under the sun, including the state, religion, public figures,
the formidable fourth estate, and even the sun.
What is obscene to one may be
provocative to another. What is crass to one may be comical to another. What is
crude to one may be entertaining to another. A bigot to somebody may be a rebel
to another.
“They can express whatever they desire.
I’m just not interested in being exposed to their abominable ideas” will be your
response.
Much like the human DNA, the human perspective is the only aspect that makes him unique. By
setting iron-clad rules of what is and what isn’t permitted will cause others to
resorts to self-censorship to prevent ruffling any feathers. The unique perspective is probably lost forever.
Because freedom of expression
emanates from freedom of thought and it is often these thoughts that have led
to change in society. All the great works of art, inventions, and discoveries happened
because someone dared to express a dissimilar idea without fear. Myriad detestable practices that
were once considered acceptable by society have been abolished because someone dared
to express an unpopular opinion.
It is essential to understand that exposure
to a diverse perspective is also an important component of freedom of
expression. You grow as you comprehend and empathize with the opposing point
of view. It may lead to a change of opinion. Growth of you as an individual, growth of society, and finally growth
of the nation.
It emphatically doesn’t mean that you
have to concur with everything that is expressed. It also doesn’t mean that you
compromise with your principles or morality or religion or ideology. All you need is a healthy amount
of skepticism but an open mind. This is applicable especially if you are a young person
So how do we bring about change? You do
not need a great visionary or social reformer or politician to lead you to the magical utopia of free ideas. Miracles in these
situations are impossible.
Be the change you want to see. It may
be a healthy practice to purposefully expose yourself to contrarian
perspectives. Follow Twitter handles, read from news outlets, and attend forums
where you know that opposing ideas will be presented.
Make a special effort to maintain friendships
with those you vehemently disagree with. You can enter into the most vicious
debates but ensure to end it all cordially. Attempt to read or listen to what
is presented to you with an open mind instead of having preconceived notions
because of who said it. Resist the temptation to label an individual with pejorative epithets. Most importantly if you think you are right, it is incumbent upon you to present facts in a methodical manner and perhaps you can
change some minds.
Sometimes it takes a solitary contrarian voice that begins like a flickering flame but with support grows and causes illumination all over.
A journey of a million miles commences with a solitary step in the right direction.
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