Exactly. We need to know what we're for, and not just what we're against. That vision gives us all a starting point for coming together to organize and make it real. Thanks, Gina, for pulling out that important point.
That said, I do think this is a good example of why it’s insufficient to simply talk/tell stories about a more just world theoretically; we also have to back that theory up in our daily behaviors — and in doing so, we prefigure the future we want in the ways we show up today. After all, seeing is believing, and actions speak louder than words. 😉
Mandy, I so appreciate you calling this out. I only know Rutger Bregman as the author of Humankind, and was unaware of all he has done since and the absence of power-sharing in his approach. The challenges we face today reflect a system that is engineered for those with power and money and doesn't work for everyone else. I believe the first step toward fixing that is engaging our collective moral imagination to start envisioning better futures, and storytelling is the means to that end. And yes, we absolutely need to back up theory with action, including partnering with communities with the least access to power to amplify and support their aspirations, abilities, and stories and ensure they have a clear voice in defining that new reality and can flourish in it.
Your point is so salient right now. Narrative has never been more important to provide not only hope but the starting point to organizing
Exactly. We need to know what we're for, and not just what we're against. That vision gives us all a starting point for coming together to organize and make it real. Thanks, Gina, for pulling out that important point.
Yowza, I hope we're not following Rutger Bregman's example. He may tell a good story, but his actions demonstrate the hollowness of his words.
https://www.counterpunch.org/2025/05/18/how-elites-rebrand-power-as-virtue/
That said, I do think this is a good example of why it’s insufficient to simply talk/tell stories about a more just world theoretically; we also have to back that theory up in our daily behaviors — and in doing so, we prefigure the future we want in the ways we show up today. After all, seeing is believing, and actions speak louder than words. 😉
Mandy, I so appreciate you calling this out. I only know Rutger Bregman as the author of Humankind, and was unaware of all he has done since and the absence of power-sharing in his approach. The challenges we face today reflect a system that is engineered for those with power and money and doesn't work for everyone else. I believe the first step toward fixing that is engaging our collective moral imagination to start envisioning better futures, and storytelling is the means to that end. And yes, we absolutely need to back up theory with action, including partnering with communities with the least access to power to amplify and support their aspirations, abilities, and stories and ensure they have a clear voice in defining that new reality and can flourish in it.