In our world today, there are many things to stand against. There are many things that I and actualinfinity stand against.
Some of the things I stand against, resist, and avidly seek to dismantle:
- Racism
- White supremacy
- Patriarchy
- Colonialism
- Genderism
- Xenophobia
- Islamaphobia
- Christonormativity
- Misuse of power
- Ablism
- Ageism
- Privilegism
- LGBTQIA+ phobia of any kind
- Heterosexism
- Size-ism / Fatphobia
- Classism
- Culturalism
- Slut-shaming
- Misogyny / Misognyoir / Transmisogny
- Capitalism (as it is today, using money as the currency)
- Any form of oppression, bias, discrimination, aggression, or “othering,” due to religion, dis/ability, economic, education, political, age, race, sexual, class, cultural, ethnic, gender, social, or marriage status.
NOTE: This list is not exhaustive in any aspect.
There is always a lot to stand against, to fight against, to resist. And, it’s important to name what is harmful, violent, oppressive, and wrong. This is a part of the healing process, for, how can we heal when we haven’t clearly identified what’s broken? Identifying a broken bone, for example, isn’t enough all by itself, to begin the healing process. Identification is only helpful if there is a place of healing that you can then move toward.
However, naming things to stand for is far less prominent. It doesn’t really count to simply throw “anti-” in front of the word as a way to describe what you’re about. How do you adequately communicate what you stand for?
There’s a handful of broad words used to describe what that might sound like, but those words are far fewer in our vocabulary. There are eleven synonyms for the word racism, but only two antonyms. Opposite words for all the concepts and systems above simply don’t exist, which is a testament to why we as a human race, trying to use language to communicate how to come together and build a better, more healed, more connected world, ends up running itself in circles over and over again. Our language is grossly deficient.
Additionally, this is not an easy list to create, because humans are conditioned to name the negative perspective, simply because our limbic system is programmed to protect us from danger.
It’s important to be clear about these harmful systems – but not in isolation. Without also naming a place to go, a vision to create, something you’re moving toward, you could end up anywhere. Better to know where you’re headed.
(I will share what I believe in as it relates to the list above in other posts.)
The same is true for business. You may be clear on who you don’t want to help, or what you don’t do, but you’ll find it’s very hard to communicate to the people you do want to help, and to share a compelling message of how you can help them, if you haven’t clearly articulated that.
I’m by no means flawless in this principle. And, I believe in it strongly enough, that it’s made my list of core principles.
In my practice with this principle, I find that it’s much more challenging to present things from the perspective of what I want, what I’m moving towards, than it is to talk about what I resist, or am moving away from.
And so, I challenge myself and you to notice which perspective you usually take. And while you name those systems or behaviors which are problematic, harmful, or wrong, put a concerted effort to also include what you believe in, what you stand for, too.
