It’s no secret that many left-wing activist groups and nonprofits, roiled by the reckonings over sexual harassment and racial justice of the past few years, have become internally dysfunctional.
In June the Intercept’s Ryan Grim wrote about the toll that staff revolts and ideologically inflected psychodramas were taking on the work: “It’s hard to find a Washington-based progressive organization that hasn’t been in tumult, or isn’t currently in tumult.” Privately, I’ve heard countless people on the professional left — especially those over, say, 35 — bemoan the irrational demands and manipulative dogmatism of some younger colleagues. But with a few exceptions, like the brave reproductive justice leader Loretta Ross, most don’t want to go on the record. Not surprisingly, many of Grim’s sources in the nonprofit world were anonymous.
That’s why the decision by Maurice Mitchell, the national director of the progressive Working Families Party, to speak out about the left’s self-sabotaging impulse is so significant. Mitchell, who has roots in the Black Lives Matter movement, has a great deal of credibility; he can’t be dismissed as a dinosaur threatened by identity politics. But as the head of an organization with a very practical devotion to building electoral power, he has a sharp critique of the way some on the left deploy identity as a trump card. “Identity and position are misused to create a doom loop that can lead to unnecessary ruptures of our political vehicles and the shuttering of vital movement spaces,” he wrote last month in a 6,000-word examination of the fallacies and rhetorical traps plaguing activist culture.
Addressed to the left, Mitchell’s keen, insightful essay seemed designed to be ignored by the broader public. It had a deeply unsexy headline, “Building Resilient Organizations,” and was published on platforms geared toward professional organizers, including The Forge and Nonprofit Quarterly. Among many progressive leaders, though, it’s been received eagerly and gratefully. It “helped to put language to tensions and trends facing our movement organizations,” Christopher Torres, an executive director of the Leadership for Democracy and Social Justice institute, said at a Tuesday webinar devoted to the article.
Mitchell’s piece systematically lays out some of the assertions and assumptions that have paralyzed progressive outfits. Among them are maximalism, or “considering anything less than the most idealistic position” a betrayal; a refusal to distinguish between discomfort and oppression; and reflexive hostility to hierarchy. He criticizes the insistence “that change on an interpersonal or organizational level must occur before it is sought or practiced on a larger scale,” an approach that keeps activists turned inward, along with the idea that progressive organizations should be places of therapeutic healing.
All the problems Mitchell elucidates have been endemic to the left for a long time. Destructive left-wing purity spirals are at least as old as the French Revolution. Jo Freeman’s classic essay “The Tyranny of Structurelessness,” about how resistance to formal leadership in second-wave feminism led to passive-aggressive power struggles, has remained relevant since it was published in the early 1970s. It’s not surprising that such counterproductive tendencies became particularly acute during the pandemic, when people were terrified, isolated and, crucially, very online. There’s a reason Grim’s article was titled “Elephant in the Zoom.”
“On balance, I think social media has been bad for democracy,” Mitchell told me. It’s a striking statement, given the organizing work he did in the wake of Michael Brown’s death in Ferguson, Mo., where social media played a major role in galvanizing protest. But as Mitchell wrote in his essay, social media platforms reward shallow polemics, “self-aggrandizement, competition and conflict.” These platforms can give power to the powerless, but they also bestow it on the most disruptive and self-interested people in any group, those likely to take their complaints to Twitter rather than to their supervisors or colleagues. The gamification of discourse through likes and retweets, he said, “flies in the face of building solidarity, of being serious about difference, of engaging in meaningful debate and struggle around complex ideas.”
The publication of “Building Resilient Organizations” and the conversation around it are signs that the fever Mitchell describes is beginning to break. It’s probably not coincidental that that’s happened in tandem with the end of pandemic restrictions and the return of more in-person gatherings.
But that doesn’t mean the dysfunctions Mitchell identified will go away on their own once people start spending more time together. He puts much of the onus on leaders to be clear with employees about the missions of their organizations and their decision-making processes and to take emotional maturity into account in hiring decisions. He urges leaders to support unionization efforts, seeing unions as the best way to mediate employee grievances. Rather than simply chiding young people for their unreasonableness, he’s trying to think through more productive ways to manage inevitable conflicts.
After all, the ultimate aim of social justice work should not be the refinement of one’s own environment. “Building resilient and strong organizations is not the end goal,” said Mitchell. “It’s a means to building power so we can defeat an authoritarian movement that wants to take away democracy.” Here’s to remembering that in 2023.
On the topic of “morality” you spoke of. First, David never addressed your question. But my observation is that morality is being used for political power in today’s culture. This is why people take a video of others rather than stepping in to assist or diffuse tension. The culture throws out a moral imperative (ridicule, if you are Saul Alinsky) expecting only one answer.
I think David is a treasure! So he cleared up something I did actually wonder about- why didn’t I see just his best selling books in the book store, like front and center? Ah- they were in the LGBTQ+ section! Being an average straight person I didn’t know that section had something for me too!
Also, you look around the world today and think we really ought to be conserving the traditions and values that we know are good and effective instead of what we are actually doing these days you are a CONSERVATIVE. Hate to tell you, better start pulling the lever for R!
A happy and merry Christmaskkah to Bari, Nellie, and all my Common Sensical friends here. I hope you have a great holiday no matter which you celebrate.
Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all and a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year [2xxx], but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great (not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country or is the only "AMERICA" in the western hemisphere), and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical disability, religious faith, choice of computer platform, or sexual preference of the wishee.
Legal Disclaimer: By accepting this agreement, you are accepting these terms.
This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher.
This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.
Sincerely,
(Name withheld for legal, social and cultural considerations.)
@bari thank you for re-introducing me to David Sedaris. When I first saw his name on TGIF I thought, “BLECcCcH that’s the guy from NPR” with the annoying NPR voice and NPR delivery. I used to love listening to the stories on NPR but as many know it has become insufferable, pretentious and ignorant. The broadcast voices tell every story interjected with valley girl “like, like, like, so like...” vocal fry and while pretentious annoying jazz music plays in the background (I repeat...Bleccch). Yes I was prejudice. It was only because of my respect for and trust in Bari Weiss that I reluctantly decided to listen to the interview. I am so glad I did. I really enjoyed hearing the interview and now I want read more of Mr. Sedaris’ writing. Thank you!
"To meet the ideological requirements of English Socialism (Ingsoc) in Oceania, the ruling Party created Newspeak, a controlled language of restricted grammar and limited vocabulary, meant to limit the freedom of thought—personal identity, self-expression, free will—that threatens the ideology of the régime. .." 1984, Orwell
Mamet's cartoons reflect whimsy and twisted humor, both of which are sorely needed in today's world.
Mamet's cartoons reflect whimsy and twisted humor, both of which are sorely needed in today's world.
'Acme brand' partridge glue? Images of Wile E. Coyote are dancing through my head.
Merry Christmas, everyone... and here's to a happy and healthy 2023 for "each and every one" of us.
Absolutely loved David. Best podcast all year. He is delightfully (sure he’d not appreciate this word) appealing. Thanks Bari.
Conversation with David was great. I was fortunate enough to see him in Cleveland a few years ago. I could listen to him tell stories all day.
Happy to support your work here. Looking forward to 2023!
Todd
the below article references:
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/06/inside-the-washington-posts-social-media-meltdown
the below article references:
https://theintercept.com/2022/06/13/progressive-organizing-infighting-callout-culture/
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/16/opinion/left-activism.html
OPINION
MICHELLE GOLDBERG
The Left’s Fever Is Breaking
Dec. 16, 2022
By Michelle Goldberg
Opinion Columnist
It’s no secret that many left-wing activist groups and nonprofits, roiled by the reckonings over sexual harassment and racial justice of the past few years, have become internally dysfunctional.
In June the Intercept’s Ryan Grim wrote about the toll that staff revolts and ideologically inflected psychodramas were taking on the work: “It’s hard to find a Washington-based progressive organization that hasn’t been in tumult, or isn’t currently in tumult.” Privately, I’ve heard countless people on the professional left — especially those over, say, 35 — bemoan the irrational demands and manipulative dogmatism of some younger colleagues. But with a few exceptions, like the brave reproductive justice leader Loretta Ross, most don’t want to go on the record. Not surprisingly, many of Grim’s sources in the nonprofit world were anonymous.
That’s why the decision by Maurice Mitchell, the national director of the progressive Working Families Party, to speak out about the left’s self-sabotaging impulse is so significant. Mitchell, who has roots in the Black Lives Matter movement, has a great deal of credibility; he can’t be dismissed as a dinosaur threatened by identity politics. But as the head of an organization with a very practical devotion to building electoral power, he has a sharp critique of the way some on the left deploy identity as a trump card. “Identity and position are misused to create a doom loop that can lead to unnecessary ruptures of our political vehicles and the shuttering of vital movement spaces,” he wrote last month in a 6,000-word examination of the fallacies and rhetorical traps plaguing activist culture.
Addressed to the left, Mitchell’s keen, insightful essay seemed designed to be ignored by the broader public. It had a deeply unsexy headline, “Building Resilient Organizations,” and was published on platforms geared toward professional organizers, including The Forge and Nonprofit Quarterly. Among many progressive leaders, though, it’s been received eagerly and gratefully. It “helped to put language to tensions and trends facing our movement organizations,” Christopher Torres, an executive director of the Leadership for Democracy and Social Justice institute, said at a Tuesday webinar devoted to the article.
Mitchell’s piece systematically lays out some of the assertions and assumptions that have paralyzed progressive outfits. Among them are maximalism, or “considering anything less than the most idealistic position” a betrayal; a refusal to distinguish between discomfort and oppression; and reflexive hostility to hierarchy. He criticizes the insistence “that change on an interpersonal or organizational level must occur before it is sought or practiced on a larger scale,” an approach that keeps activists turned inward, along with the idea that progressive organizations should be places of therapeutic healing.
All the problems Mitchell elucidates have been endemic to the left for a long time. Destructive left-wing purity spirals are at least as old as the French Revolution. Jo Freeman’s classic essay “The Tyranny of Structurelessness,” about how resistance to formal leadership in second-wave feminism led to passive-aggressive power struggles, has remained relevant since it was published in the early 1970s. It’s not surprising that such counterproductive tendencies became particularly acute during the pandemic, when people were terrified, isolated and, crucially, very online. There’s a reason Grim’s article was titled “Elephant in the Zoom.”
“On balance, I think social media has been bad for democracy,” Mitchell told me. It’s a striking statement, given the organizing work he did in the wake of Michael Brown’s death in Ferguson, Mo., where social media played a major role in galvanizing protest. But as Mitchell wrote in his essay, social media platforms reward shallow polemics, “self-aggrandizement, competition and conflict.” These platforms can give power to the powerless, but they also bestow it on the most disruptive and self-interested people in any group, those likely to take their complaints to Twitter rather than to their supervisors or colleagues. The gamification of discourse through likes and retweets, he said, “flies in the face of building solidarity, of being serious about difference, of engaging in meaningful debate and struggle around complex ideas.”
The publication of “Building Resilient Organizations” and the conversation around it are signs that the fever Mitchell describes is beginning to break. It’s probably not coincidental that that’s happened in tandem with the end of pandemic restrictions and the return of more in-person gatherings.
But that doesn’t mean the dysfunctions Mitchell identified will go away on their own once people start spending more time together. He puts much of the onus on leaders to be clear with employees about the missions of their organizations and their decision-making processes and to take emotional maturity into account in hiring decisions. He urges leaders to support unionization efforts, seeing unions as the best way to mediate employee grievances. Rather than simply chiding young people for their unreasonableness, he’s trying to think through more productive ways to manage inevitable conflicts.
After all, the ultimate aim of social justice work should not be the refinement of one’s own environment. “Building resilient and strong organizations is not the end goal,” said Mitchell. “It’s a means to building power so we can defeat an authoritarian movement that wants to take away democracy.” Here’s to remembering that in 2023.
...
Bari,
When will we see your reaction to the Twitter Files. I've been waiting for something in Free Press.
Have you seen the stuff from Lee Fang, Shellenberger and Taibbi?
Loved the Sedaris interview. Made me laugh and feel sad all in a span of an hour. Well done. Happy Holidays Free Press! Very grateful for you all!
This was a joy, thank you Bari.
On the topic of “morality” you spoke of. First, David never addressed your question. But my observation is that morality is being used for political power in today’s culture. This is why people take a video of others rather than stepping in to assist or diffuse tension. The culture throws out a moral imperative (ridicule, if you are Saul Alinsky) expecting only one answer.
I think David is a treasure! So he cleared up something I did actually wonder about- why didn’t I see just his best selling books in the book store, like front and center? Ah- they were in the LGBTQ+ section! Being an average straight person I didn’t know that section had something for me too!
Also, you look around the world today and think we really ought to be conserving the traditions and values that we know are good and effective instead of what we are actually doing these days you are a CONSERVATIVE. Hate to tell you, better start pulling the lever for R!
You’re pretty funny, yourself
A happy and merry Christmaskkah to Bari, Nellie, and all my Common Sensical friends here. I hope you have a great holiday no matter which you celebrate.
(see the link below for source)
Politically Correct Holiday Greeting: Humor
Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all and a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year [2xxx], but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great (not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country or is the only "AMERICA" in the western hemisphere), and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical disability, religious faith, choice of computer platform, or sexual preference of the wishee.
Legal Disclaimer: By accepting this agreement, you are accepting these terms.
This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher.
This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.
Sincerely,
(Name withheld for legal, social and cultural considerations.)
https://www.nightscribe.com/Entertainment/pc_holiday_greeting.htm
This is sensational, e. Happy holidays to you and yours.
Saw Sedaris live in Calgary at the Jubily a year ago
Funny guy
@bari thank you for re-introducing me to David Sedaris. When I first saw his name on TGIF I thought, “BLECcCcH that’s the guy from NPR” with the annoying NPR voice and NPR delivery. I used to love listening to the stories on NPR but as many know it has become insufferable, pretentious and ignorant. The broadcast voices tell every story interjected with valley girl “like, like, like, so like...” vocal fry and while pretentious annoying jazz music plays in the background (I repeat...Bleccch). Yes I was prejudice. It was only because of my respect for and trust in Bari Weiss that I reluctantly decided to listen to the interview. I am so glad I did. I really enjoyed hearing the interview and now I want read more of Mr. Sedaris’ writing. Thank you!
"To meet the ideological requirements of English Socialism (Ingsoc) in Oceania, the ruling Party created Newspeak, a controlled language of restricted grammar and limited vocabulary, meant to limit the freedom of thought—personal identity, self-expression, free will—that threatens the ideology of the régime. .." 1984, Orwell
Happy Kwanzaa everyone!
Mele Kalikimaka!
Ya baby
Am in Maui until the 27th
Missed all that -38 global warming
Lol, I was snorkeling off Niihau 2 months ago. Now I’m back in New Jersey basking in a balmy, global warming induced 9 degree heat wave
Gotta love Hawaii.