More Civil Societies: identity in politics
Identity has had a long, and often controversial, history: from orientalism and dismantling Arab stereotypes, to sexual orientation, to feminism, to the recent black lives matter vs all lives matter debate, and the resurgence of white nationalism.
But the framework in which we collectively view and understand these identities is often established by Western imperialism – that is, a very white European constructed sense of self. It’s happening here in Australia, including when ANU recently pulled out of negotiations with the Ramsay Centre for a proposed western civilisation degree – with controversy surrounding the use of the term ‘civilisation’.
In this week’s episode, Eva Cox suggests that perhaps, in order to achieve a more civil society, focusing on what we have in common is just as important as our differences, and that, going forward, it would be valuable to reflect on how we deal with diversity and inequalities.
