One hundred years ago, I could not have dreamed of having the freedoms I possess today. Sanders or Clinton would not have been a thought of mine; would it really mattered which candidate I preferred if I could not vote? Instead of seeing images of non-binary individuals on magazine covers, it would be very likely to not even know such a thing even existed. Human beings have evolved within their relative infancy on this planet at a rapid pace, swapping social norms and customs in and out of fashion like clockwork.
This progressivism is fantastic; there is nothing that enthralls me more than knowing that as each day passes, individuals of different races, genders, and sexual orientations are well on their way to equivalent freedoms as their cisgendered, Caucasian, male counterparts. However, this elation is rapidly becoming undermined by something much more sinister, something that manipulates the state of being a victim and in many ways flips the script in the progressive movement.
The birth of the "social justice warrior," also referred to as the "Tumblrina" in some corners of the internet, has taken this positive and turned it into a complete negative. The enlightened mindset, striving for the equality of men and women has devolved into thinly veiled misandry. The absolutely essential concept of racial equality has become a rat race to see who can persecute their way to the top. The body positivity movement has rapidly become the "skinny shaming" movement. Somewhere along the way, these messages of hope were garbled. This oversensitivity exists nowadays where seemingly anything could "trigger," or provoke a reaction of severe anxiety, anybody, prompting the coining of the term "the cry-bully," a horrifying amalgamation of the victim and the antagonist.
Unfortunately, we live in an era where the will of these individuals will be heeded. They find their way into legitimate activist causes and use them as a platform for attention-seeking, Munchausen-esque self-pity. I find this particularly egregious simply because I consider myself a legitimate supporter of many of these causes. I think many of the examples wherein a social justice warrior can abuse their position on the "right," or victim's side, are inherently correct; absolutely people of color should have equality without fear of persecution, of course, women should be valued for not only their beauty, but also their leadership prowess and intellectual capacity. However, slacktivists, who pretend to care about these issues, make a mockery of the causes they purportedly support, thwarting the attempts to pursue the righteousness made by others who legitimately believe in the movement.
It's very easy to see the potential for this to cause irrevocable harm. The divisiveness of the actions of these individuals can only hinder social progress, as these individuals seem fundamentally incapable of empathizing with individuals with oppositional views that "violate their safe spaces". Of course, it could be said that sometimes, sticking firmly to ideals is a good thing, but an inability to compromise on complex social issues is usually not beneficial. I think if any progress is to be made, it is important to approach issues with open minds and hearts, and allow ourselves to be as constructive and understanding as possible. I also think it is important to understand when activism crosses the threshold into abuse. Seeing this clearly, and working toward the common good will be largely beneficial, but there's a distance to be covered if we are going to get that far.
