Published February 28, 2011
by iris_author
I just watched yet another inspiring TED video. This clip featured Dave Meslin presenting his findings on community inaction entitled, ‘Redefining Apathy.’ In this TED talk, Meslin asks us to question the excuses we use for our inaction. We constantly hear that we are ‘lazy,’ or ‘stupid,’ absolving ourselves from responsibility as we describe humanity as a helpless actor in the systems we have created.
Meslin suggests that apathy is not an internal characteristic that comes from laziness or stupidity, rather a complex interaction between cultural, sociological, political and economic factors that challenges and systemically creates barriers one must overcome, thereby actively discouraging people from engagement. I strongly encourage everyone to watch this video -as always with TED - you will not be disappointed!
This articulation of the defining features of apathy made me think of the bureaucracy at York which is more than difficult to manoeuvre. How do you find out how to get involved? What student clubs exist, or more importantly, which ones are active? What are they doing to make changes on campus? Which ones match politics similar to your own? How can you find information on general engagement? How can you hold a rally or protest? Are there any real student spaces on campus left to engage in?
There are some places you can find this information, but nothing comprehensive or that would allow any form of collaboration. York University needs a forum where students can mediate these conflicts and determine where they would like to get involved, and ultimately what they would like changed. Recently, an IRIS GA suggested a sustainability forum to begin coordinating these activities and submitted the idea to the TD Green Challenge. If you would like to check out their promotional video, or vote for the sustainability hub, you can view the video here. It is my hope that this is implemented so that we can begin demolishing the barriers and challenges in our way, so that we can begin focusing on the real issues at play.
Ultimately, the main purpose of this blog post is to ask you to reject distractions and excuses like, ‘people are lazy, selfish, and stupid’ and focus on the actual issues.
Posted in: Blogs | Students Speak
