So, I’ve been following this conversation, and I thought I should point out that the original point was that the Tumblr social justice community has the tendency to say things like “oppressive fucks” about people who honestly don’t know better. Sure, there are asshats out there that say problematic things with full knowledge that they will hurt someone, but not everyone is out to get you. Most people are simply raised in a system that encourages ignorance and hateful speech.
While the oppressed never owe an explanation, human beings owe fucking decency to other human beings. The point, that you have conveniently ignored the vast majority of this conversation, is that people who are oppressed have no right to act righteous and lash out at innocent people that are not intentionally hurting them.
Calling someone out should never included attacking that person, which in the great world of Tumblr, it does most of the time. That is an ad hominem attack. However, if someone is like “Yo, you said this slur and it’s offensive” and that person responds with “Don’t be so butthurt, *repeats slur here*, rip that mofo a new one.
But if someone says something oppressive that is generally socially acceptable, and probably has never had someone say anything to them before, it is fucking human decency to call them out by saying “that language is oppressive” instead of “you’re such an oppressive asshole! How dare you say something like! You’re a bad person.”
That second example is an example of bullying.
That was the original point.
Yes, I know what the discussion is about. I’ve been following it and engaging in it since the beginning too.
Calling someone an oppressive fuck is an observation of fact if they are being an oppressive fuck. If the person in question truly didn’t intend* to cause pain and truly doesn’t want to be an oppressive fuck they should respond by changing their behaviour not by making it about their hurt feelings. They most definitely should not respond by employing a tone argument against the oppressed person. AND THIS IS TRUE EVEN WHEN THE CALL OUT WAS DONE IN A NASTY MANNER.
My personal approach is to do my best to challenge oppression in a constructive and respectful manner. But it’s not my job to police those people who don’t want to do this, or those who can’t because they’re just so fucking angry; it’s not my job to lecture minorities about “human decency” when they’ve been shat on all their fucking life.
“THIS IS TRUE EVEN WHEN THE CALL OUT WAS DONE IN A NASTY MANNER.” And this is where I absolutely can’t agree with you. No one has been policing anything; they have been expressing their own views and personal opinions. If I say I don’t like when people wear flip-flops in the winter, I think it’s silly. I am not policing their footwear. I am stating an opinion. And here is my opinion again. It is natural to be angry and upset and enraged at oppression and societal standards and a number of other things. But it is irrational to take that anger and disregard other human beings because of it. If we truly want change, it needs to happen on both sides.
(via lavenderlabia)
