While blindfolds, dark rooms, and ropes often come to mind when we hear the word “captive”, the word “captivating” often implies the opposite… that is… within the context of organizing or social movements. Often used to refer to key figures and leaders in power movements, I began to ask myself, “Who is captivating the masses today?” or better yet, “What makes someone captivating?” Now I am not referring to captivating in a way that Drake or whoever is relevant on E News or Perez Hilton’s blog, is captivating. I am referring to captivating in a way that the “average” person can become indignant about where we are at as a society and move towards improving the collective’s present and futures. While I may find Malcom X or Angela Davis captivating (that’s just me, I’m nerdy like that), I have seen that for most people, to them, they are no more than a name in the history books, a person, no longer relevant or relatable to their present.
While the present conditions somewhat mirrors that of the 60’s and 70’s (Arizona’s ban on ethnic studies, anti-immigrant legislation, anti-gay marriage, war, unemployment, and so on…), the way in which we, the masses have responded, has been quite the opposite. Now I am not talking about the same people you see march at anti-war rallies yearly or the same folks you see at educational meetings where the presenters are often reporting on something that the audience already has a good grasp of, I am talking about those everyday people. Those got-to-work-everyday-never-studied-Marx-or-went to-a-leftist-college, not-impressed-by-revolutionary-chants type people (yes, I said wrote it).
While, I am fairly young and too poor to travel much, I have come to notice a sort of pattern in which some, not all, people have become involved in working towards social justice in the Bay Area and amongst Filipino Americans. While this statement may be off-mark or may open up new doors and questions relating to resources and opportunities, the question I would rather like to return to is, “What is captivating” or “How do you captivate those who are different from you in terms of experience, perception, privilege, etc.?” While I do not have the complete answers to these questions, I believe that part of the answer lies in creativity and relationships.
When I say creativity, I am not referring to simply creating art, because even art can be non-creative (that’s called the music industry, ha). I mean a kind of creativity that isn’t just art but is new, refreshing, and breaks patterned, re-runned, approaches that have been used to try and captivate the masses. Complimentary to this approach is also being able to build relationships, even with people who may not be as “conscious-makibaka-revolutionary-buck-buck-burn-down-babylon-i-have-a-serious-face-while-raising-my-left-fist-in-every-picture” as a some folks might to view themselves. There are too many times in which I’ve heard stories of people being turned off by people who are condescending, dismissive, cliquey, and impatient because they aren’t as “conscious”. While many of us may have embodied some of these characteristics in the past, it is important to remember that building relationships requires patience, humility, love, and genuine interest. Lacking these qualities only dehumanizes the work that many would claim to “die for”.
-ARISTYLES
what is lovely about blogs, is that if a person reads it and wants to respond, one does not have the option to press the "like" button.
ReplyDeleteBesides liking this post, I can relate to it. How does one "captivate" and how does one "captivate" the masses without losing one's style, opinion, one's self... Finding the balance of being appealing, but at the same time true to one's self. Is truth the appeal?
Just some thoughts. keep up the writing, and i'll keep up with the reading!