I like how you pulled from so many thought leaders and drove home that clarity on all flourishing being mutual! I'm curious, where do you feel like we are today when it comes to striving to survive well together? What does the ideal & feasible place of working towards mutual flourishing look like?
Thank you so much for reading. Appreciate the questions. To answer your first one, in what will probably feel like a non-answer, I think it depends on the context. Among different communities, especially within mutual aid groups, I know there are examples of interdependence rooted in shared resources, infrastructures, and knowledge. These examples reflect the practice of living into the world we want to see. However, for many of us, I know collectivism doesn’t come naturally based on our conditioning. It takes working with others to unlearn that.
Re: your second question, I’d say the ideal place is somewhere with others where you are free to come as yourself and struggle with questions and solutions together. Needs can be met there. Political education is offered there. Humans seeing each other as human and finding points of solidarity. Currently, this place for me is a local book club hosted by Black Men Build. But I know this can look different based on what’s available in different communities.
I’d love to turn those questions back to you. Curious your thoughts!
I appreciate both of your answers especially detailing Black Men Build as an example of what that can look like!
Re: where we are, I agree with you and was thinking about that point. I think we have examples of it within groups of people like you committed to thinking about this model and I don't think we would need every person to be in this group but to expand the amount of people working collectively. I know for myself, a lot of the dialogue in 2020 was an introduction to that approach and showed me that it exists but might not be as expansive as it ideally could. A big part of the current state to me though does have to account for the amount of division that we have, especially through media. I don't think everyone has to agree but I think disagreement has to be less personal.
Re: what ideal and feasible could look like, I love your example of starting at a group level bc I wasn't thinking about that as much. I think broadly, it would look like having a culture of collective thinking/an inclination to collaborate rather than focus on individual's best interest. And ideally, that shift can happen but I also recognize a lot of people embrace western individualism. So for a view of it before that culture shift happens, I'd say that I envision more focus across the range of perspectives on flourishing and where we stand from that rather than viewing people as barriers to flourishing and then initiatives led from those perspectives on how to address the structural challenges to flourishing in those departments. I think this can make it a bit easier to collaborate with non-likeminded people and a lot easier with like-minded and can usher in people naturally embracing a sense that they should strive together for a greater good that is geared towards breaking down the principles in the way of flourishing rather than breaking down people.
Indeed!
I like how you pulled from so many thought leaders and drove home that clarity on all flourishing being mutual! I'm curious, where do you feel like we are today when it comes to striving to survive well together? What does the ideal & feasible place of working towards mutual flourishing look like?
Thank you so much for reading. Appreciate the questions. To answer your first one, in what will probably feel like a non-answer, I think it depends on the context. Among different communities, especially within mutual aid groups, I know there are examples of interdependence rooted in shared resources, infrastructures, and knowledge. These examples reflect the practice of living into the world we want to see. However, for many of us, I know collectivism doesn’t come naturally based on our conditioning. It takes working with others to unlearn that.
Re: your second question, I’d say the ideal place is somewhere with others where you are free to come as yourself and struggle with questions and solutions together. Needs can be met there. Political education is offered there. Humans seeing each other as human and finding points of solidarity. Currently, this place for me is a local book club hosted by Black Men Build. But I know this can look different based on what’s available in different communities.
I’d love to turn those questions back to you. Curious your thoughts!
I appreciate both of your answers especially detailing Black Men Build as an example of what that can look like!
Re: where we are, I agree with you and was thinking about that point. I think we have examples of it within groups of people like you committed to thinking about this model and I don't think we would need every person to be in this group but to expand the amount of people working collectively. I know for myself, a lot of the dialogue in 2020 was an introduction to that approach and showed me that it exists but might not be as expansive as it ideally could. A big part of the current state to me though does have to account for the amount of division that we have, especially through media. I don't think everyone has to agree but I think disagreement has to be less personal.
Re: what ideal and feasible could look like, I love your example of starting at a group level bc I wasn't thinking about that as much. I think broadly, it would look like having a culture of collective thinking/an inclination to collaborate rather than focus on individual's best interest. And ideally, that shift can happen but I also recognize a lot of people embrace western individualism. So for a view of it before that culture shift happens, I'd say that I envision more focus across the range of perspectives on flourishing and where we stand from that rather than viewing people as barriers to flourishing and then initiatives led from those perspectives on how to address the structural challenges to flourishing in those departments. I think this can make it a bit easier to collaborate with non-likeminded people and a lot easier with like-minded and can usher in people naturally embracing a sense that they should strive together for a greater good that is geared towards breaking down the principles in the way of flourishing rather than breaking down people.
Once human kind will truly understand this, we will not have this insanity in this world anymore.
Greed, ignorance and arrogance have been our problem from day one and we have not learned from our past.