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Asha Sanaker's avatar

Forgive me. I'm about to ramble for a moment. But I think part of why our movements, particularly on the Left (I can't speak for those on the Right, though maybe they fall prey to this. I have no idea.) veer into self-righteousness and purity politics is because we don't actually know how to grapple constructively with the reality of harm-- the harm we do to each other and the harm all of us commit at one time or another. We want to act as if there is some reality in which harm doesn't exist and if we keep weeding out all "those people" then someday we'll all be perfect and untroubled and righteous together. The irony isn't lost on me in the current moment that the best writing I've encountered on how we can deal constructively with harm in relationship and community was written by a Jewish rabbi based on the work of a 13th-century Jewish philosopher, Maimonides. It is Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg's incredible book, On Repentance and Repairs: Making Amends in an Unapologetic World. I highly recommend it.

https://bookshop.org/p/books/on-repentance-and-repair-making-amends-in-an-unapologetic-world-danya-ruttenberg/17845057

Part of staying open to other people who may not align perfectly with you is wrestling (internally and together) with how to confront harm realistically, with an eye towards transformation. Until we can do that we'll keep shying away from the relationships, alliances, conversations, and confrontations that could actually change our world, instead choosing what keeps us comfortable.

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Gretchen's avatar

Just wanted to say I loved this piece, and I think it's exactly what I needed to hear right now. Thanks, Garrett! I also cannot stop thinking about the parallels to the 1960s re: "our current times," even before this wave of protests but especially after. It is my Roman Empire, you could say! Even though a lot of the dreams of the '60s did not come true, I think that analyzing what did and do not work is so valuable in this moment.

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