A Grove of Ashes and Aspens

This post was written as a collaborative post between Nu Academia (author of the first half) and Ashton (author of the second half). As such, it provides two separate, though similar, perspectives on the same topic.

As others have already pointed out, to say you’re anti-antifa is (with a little mathematical simplification) to say you’re simply fa.

Which is short for fascist.

Counter-culture is as much of a part of culture as the culture itself; but what a lot of people overlook is counter-counter-culture. While, similarly to anti-antifa, that can be boiled down to simply culture, I think it is important to recognize that there is a different sort of school of thought in process here. Because, if you’ve ever interacted with someone deep in counter-counter-culture, you’ll notice one thing: they are frequently angry.

The inherent problem at the core of counter-counter-culture is ignorance. Consciously or otherwise, to fight for counter-counter-culture is to fight for conformity; and when it comes to a lot of counter-culture, conformity has a core problem of its own. Misogyny, transphobia, homophobia, ableism, capitalism, colonialism, racism; (I’m gonna stop here or I’d be going all fucking day) a lot of counter-counter-culturists are (knowingly or not) fighting for those systems. If you call them out on it, there is a high chance they’ll vehemently (or outright angrily) deny it— they want change, they aren’t a bigot, they just don’t want change “like this.”

To convince a conformist that the system they live in and are actively fighting for has its flaws is like trying to convince someone they’ve been propagandized; trying to point at your shadow with a flashlight.

The other inherent problem is the power of spite. They aren’t doing what they do for the culture, no no, they’re doing it because they just hate the counter-culturists. And that, sadly, is a dangerous thing; it means we just can’t reach them. Why on earth would they ever want to listen to us, people they hate? Conformists are more than just complacent; propagandize them enough, and they’ll start focusing more on their hate for the “other” to notice the problems the “other” are pointing out about the society they share. They gladly wear the glasses put on their face, and growl at those who suggest they take them off every once and awhile; and that’s when spite takes over. Anger may cool, rage may boil over, but to hold and feel those emotions hurts. Spite? Spite is the invisible weed of the mind. It spreads painlessly. With enough fuel, enough fertilizer, it will grow exponentially. If it is not nipped, it will take over. With propaganda feeding it, spite is easy.

Now Playing: At the Court of the Wild Hunt by Elvenking

Now, this is a conversation that also requires nuance.

Being against the dominant culture and the opposition of mob mentality is never something that I will ever be against, especially if that dominant culture and mob mentality upholds oppressive systems and ideals. If we are to build a better world for everyone, we should be against the ideals that harm individual people on things they can’t change.

But at the same time, this can run the risk of creating a different mob mentality, in that no matter what steps are taken to try and change something, it will never be good enough unless it’s done in the way this one specific group wants. While wanting change quickly is not inherently a bad thing, it can harm the overall message in extremes.

This potential harm, unfortunately, can come to light quite easily in voting. It is an unfortunate reality that many political candidates don’t campaign enough to the younger and incoming generation of voters, and if they do, it is hard to see the positive impacts of that on the lives of those affected.

But again, this requires nuance. Politics aren’t easily changed, and especially with the political landscape of North America, it can be hard for those in power, who often benefit from oppressive systems of power in some capacity, to see all of the issues that affect populations like women or queer people or specifically trans people or people of colour or religious minorities.

When considering these conversations, it is also important to keep in mind the fact that all of these identities can intersect, and whether or not a specific person falls into multiple of these categories, intersectionality in the conversation of culture and counterculture is important to observe. A person can be gay, but still ultimately benefit from being a white man, even if he benefits less than his straight counterparts. A straight white woman will benefit more than a straight woman of colour, and even more so than a queer woman of colour, even if she is a victim of misogyny, sexism, and the patriarchy.

Thus, while being against the dominant and oppressive culture can have its pitfalls, it’s generally a position that, in the modern political and social landscape, will benefit everyone. The nuances of these positions will vary from person to person and what they want to focus on, but it is a position that deserves more discussion and more widespread acceptance and focus in modern society.