FYI # 1: This is an essay. I know. I tried to make it short but couldn't.
FYI # 2: This is an annoying color, sorry. I tried to change it and couldn't.
Ok so I feel as though some here in the US people tend to try and make me feel guilty about being opposed to American politics. That's just my general impression, and so it makes me wonder whether I should feel guilty about rejecting the U.S. political system? That opinion just comes from constantly and actively resisting my "American" side, because I feel that it is always imposed upon me by others and obviously by the country I'm living in right now. By resisting that identity, I am also resisting the politics which accompany it.
So that's why I'm calling this identity politics. Though originally I thought "the politics of identity" was just an ideological/academic term, so I dismissed it, but now I see how pertinent it is to what I'm experiencing right now. I've always been somewhat opposed to the concept of being "political" about one's beliefs, because to an extent I always thought that being really "political" would inevitably result in holding people accountable to a system of ideas that they don't necessarily consider to be applicable to them. I think that viewpoint is true to an extent, but it's also pretty unavoidable. I also think that it comes from growing up in an environment where there was always a weird (and we come back to this America problem) American political undercurrent that would judge and treat people according to American beliefs, which tend to entail a disproportionate amount of political-ness. I don't know why things are that way, but I find that everything in this country boils down to politics and economy, and when you think about it, American economy = american consumerism = economic power = political power. In short, I always thought about politics in a more colonial sense. For all of you guys since you know more or less about colonial history, I'm referring to the way in which western political beliefs are imposed upon people and people were judged and mistreated based on a system that was essentially irrelevant to their way of life. Obviously this issue is more complicated these days with globalization, etc, and I recognize this but I don't want to go into it too much because then this post will last FOREVER.
Ok so back to the story: now and then my parents keep pressuring me to take American political jobs and do stuff in American politics. My mom keeps pressuring me to join the State Department, but the issues come mostly from my Dad because he is unable to accept my philosophy that I totally and utterly reject the american political system in this country. AND I think that deep inside he takes this as a personal affront (see how the identity and politics become personal?), which is why he keeps trying to make me accept them. He is always telling me to join political campaigns, and is always urging me to participate in local politics, and my own response is that it is almost impossible to listen to political views and thus participate in political organisations that you are constantly resisting because they seem so foreign to me. And so just the other day we had a semi-argument because I was telling him about my plans for the future, and he kept insisting that I either work for a congressman or work as part of a political campaign. And I guess it was rude, but my first response was "ew", because to me these jobs embody institutions that are misleading and oppressive and that are constantly trying to quash diversity (of culture and political beliefs, like my socialist self) in american society. On top of that politics and especially political campaigns have become so ridiculously capitalist in this country that politicians are for the most part only rich people and if they are not personally rich, then they have rich connections, which leads to general ignorance and lack of action regarding anti-poverty and pro-welfare policies. I could go on forever about this. And I am.
But essentially the confrontation between my dad and I represents a microcosm of my political experience in general, which I realized is closely tied to mixed identity. And so then I asked myself what politics I would truly espouse, and I realized that I will never be able to adopt the national politics of any country, period. I don't know why, but I know this. And so then it lead me to ask myself whether the realization that my identity is political is actually a cop-out. I was wondering this because the whole experience of being "multicultural" causes the whole experience of being in-between categories, and when that is converted into politics, and identity politics in particular, it leads to a questioning of where I stand exactly. And if having "universal" politics is actually possible, and if it's acceptable for me to take a political stance that will never align with any nation anywhere without appearing as though I'm just vacillating. This is why I want to do international law, because I feel like it relies on a system that needs to accommodate itself to, and mediate the spaces between, the national politics of the international community. It's kaleidoscopic :) Whew. So I'm asking now, is it a cop-out to be politically in-between? Is it unacceptable to reject the politics of a specific place or country without falling back on the politics of a different country as a defense? Is it possible to engage in these "identity politics" without appearing apolitical or unreasonable?
FYI # 2: This is an annoying color, sorry. I tried to change it and couldn't.
Ok so I feel as though some here in the US people tend to try and make me feel guilty about being opposed to American politics. That's just my general impression, and so it makes me wonder whether I should feel guilty about rejecting the U.S. political system? That opinion just comes from constantly and actively resisting my "American" side, because I feel that it is always imposed upon me by others and obviously by the country I'm living in right now. By resisting that identity, I am also resisting the politics which accompany it.
So that's why I'm calling this identity politics. Though originally I thought "the politics of identity" was just an ideological/academic term, so I dismissed it, but now I see how pertinent it is to what I'm experiencing right now. I've always been somewhat opposed to the concept of being "political" about one's beliefs, because to an extent I always thought that being really "political" would inevitably result in holding people accountable to a system of ideas that they don't necessarily consider to be applicable to them. I think that viewpoint is true to an extent, but it's also pretty unavoidable. I also think that it comes from growing up in an environment where there was always a weird (and we come back to this America problem) American political undercurrent that would judge and treat people according to American beliefs, which tend to entail a disproportionate amount of political-ness. I don't know why things are that way, but I find that everything in this country boils down to politics and economy, and when you think about it, American economy = american consumerism = economic power = political power. In short, I always thought about politics in a more colonial sense. For all of you guys since you know more or less about colonial history, I'm referring to the way in which western political beliefs are imposed upon people and people were judged and mistreated based on a system that was essentially irrelevant to their way of life. Obviously this issue is more complicated these days with globalization, etc, and I recognize this but I don't want to go into it too much because then this post will last FOREVER.
Ok so back to the story: now and then my parents keep pressuring me to take American political jobs and do stuff in American politics. My mom keeps pressuring me to join the State Department, but the issues come mostly from my Dad because he is unable to accept my philosophy that I totally and utterly reject the american political system in this country. AND I think that deep inside he takes this as a personal affront (see how the identity and politics become personal?), which is why he keeps trying to make me accept them. He is always telling me to join political campaigns, and is always urging me to participate in local politics, and my own response is that it is almost impossible to listen to political views and thus participate in political organisations that you are constantly resisting because they seem so foreign to me. And so just the other day we had a semi-argument because I was telling him about my plans for the future, and he kept insisting that I either work for a congressman or work as part of a political campaign. And I guess it was rude, but my first response was "ew", because to me these jobs embody institutions that are misleading and oppressive and that are constantly trying to quash diversity (of culture and political beliefs, like my socialist self) in american society. On top of that politics and especially political campaigns have become so ridiculously capitalist in this country that politicians are for the most part only rich people and if they are not personally rich, then they have rich connections, which leads to general ignorance and lack of action regarding anti-poverty and pro-welfare policies. I could go on forever about this. And I am.
But essentially the confrontation between my dad and I represents a microcosm of my political experience in general, which I realized is closely tied to mixed identity. And so then I asked myself what politics I would truly espouse, and I realized that I will never be able to adopt the national politics of any country, period. I don't know why, but I know this. And so then it lead me to ask myself whether the realization that my identity is political is actually a cop-out. I was wondering this because the whole experience of being "multicultural" causes the whole experience of being in-between categories, and when that is converted into politics, and identity politics in particular, it leads to a questioning of where I stand exactly. And if having "universal" politics is actually possible, and if it's acceptable for me to take a political stance that will never align with any nation anywhere without appearing as though I'm just vacillating. This is why I want to do international law, because I feel like it relies on a system that needs to accommodate itself to, and mediate the spaces between, the national politics of the international community. It's kaleidoscopic :) Whew. So I'm asking now, is it a cop-out to be politically in-between? Is it unacceptable to reject the politics of a specific place or country without falling back on the politics of a different country as a defense? Is it possible to engage in these "identity politics" without appearing apolitical or unreasonable?
Whew. Lemme know what you think. Sorry this was so long!
4 comments:
im pissed cuz i just replied and then my internet pooped out and i lost it.
but here goes again.
my answer is no, its not a cop-out to be political in between. in fact, i think being critical of the way things work is what makes us so cool. but really, i dont think you really are politically in between, meaning i dont think youre wishywashy, you know what you believe in and you believe in it strongly. just because all of your views dont fit perfectly into the existing system doesnt mean you cant be part of the system, or at least part of the solution, i think. i was reading a bbc article about barak obama, and it quotes him saying that he hasnt spent time learning the ways of washington, but knows that they have to change. i thought it was an awesome quote because it sums up exactly how i feel about the situation and basically i wanna be him in woman-form when i grow up.
i have to say, though, that i dont really think youre outside of american politics and that being "opposed to American politics" is kind of too much of a generalization because it pins american politics down as what its been for the past 6 years (which is BAD). after my first semester in wws i've kind of changed my views about american politics in the sense that i feel like anything is possible and that the only way you can have things change the way you want them to is to do something about it. so as far as im concerned, the only cop-out thing to be politically is apathetic. as long as you vote obama '08, we're cool.
:)
Ok let me clarify something that I think you misinterpreted, and which reminds me of the conversation we had with Dandan. What I mean about american politics is that I "feel" outside American politics, and that results in a general impression that I'm constantly existing in opposition to the political system. Just think about it more in terms of patriotism and being able to identify with the politics of a specific country, in the representational sense. I don't mean to bash the system itself, because in the end it's just a political framework, and it will always be subject to change by virtue of the nature of politics. What I mean is that I don't identify with this country, and so if politics consist of representing the country, then I feel like my "political identity" is always opposed to American politics.
Basically I am saying that when you identify with the politics of a country, you are identifying with that country, and that doesn't sit well with me. Yes, I'll still vote, but this is why this is such a confusing thing, because I don't want to reject a "system" per se (because that's silly), I just want to convey the extent to which our political participation is part of our identity, and the country whose politics we adopt is necessarily part of that as well.
gah okay I just re-read that and it makes no sense. All I am wondering is, how do you reconcile the conflict that arises when you realise that you don't have a national identity in the strict send of the term, and because you dont have a national identity then how can you become a part of national politics without feeling extremely uncomfortable? Uncomfortable. Yes, that's how I feel. Ok, I quit now.
alright, i get it. and i think youre right. you have to identify with a country before you can identify with its politics. i guess i really don't know what that's like because in the political sense i guess i'm american. i guess i can't tell you not to feel uncomfortable, but it seems acceptable to reject national identities if they dont mesh well with you.
so i think i know what you mean.
Post a Comment