Imagine someone you love is kidnapped and they want ransom out of you. There is no way police can help you. The only way to ensure your loved one's safety seems to be just cold cash. If you can't pay or try another method and your loved one dies in the process, is it your fault?
No, saying so is lessening the crime of the kidnapper. The entire situation exists because of them in the first place, and they are entirely in the blame for this. One's ability of protecting others, irresponsibility or incompetence is unrelated to the act of kidnappers. Saying otherwise makes kidnappers into a force of nature, akin to a tornado or flood and implies the victims at least partially deserved what's coming to them, just as when people unfortunately say about many sexual assault, rape or domestic violence cases. However, it should be also remembered that people's safety cannot be also just left at the mercy of would-be assaulters nor any kind of top-down force can ensure it permanently. A world where there capital no longer exists and everyone's needs are met is the only way anyone won't get kidnapped for money. This, unlike in victim's situation, doesn't absolve any ransomers from their guilt but they must be recognized as a part of a wider problem too.
Imagine at school, you are a decently well-off and popular person but you have a friend that is poor and from a marginalized group. Some bullies decides to have your money, but you are not vulnerable enough for their liking. So instead, they start to bully your friend, which doesn't have any real support avenues besides you. When you confront the bullies, they propose you an offer: As long as you pay them regularly, they will leave your friend alone. Because you are a popular, you can use your influence to some extent and even directly fight them bavk but they can too and it can get really dangerous, especially if authorities end up intervening. The amount they ask on the other hand, is trivial to you. So, if you don't pay them and they keep bullying your friend as a result, is this your fault?
No, notice how I deliberately mislead by saying "as a result?". The truth is "bullying" and "not paying" does not constitute a rational cause-and-effect. Bullying is the result of bully's decision, which is the result of a society that renders certain identities vulnerable. You can argue that the authorities who are willingly appointed for handling such situations has actual responsibility, but, that still shouldn't distract that bullying is a systemic problem. Individually beating an oppressive society or appointing officers for fixing its problems cannot ever replace actually fighting against the oppression itself. At best they give momentary victories, at worst they make us numb to the opression, allow us to pretend its a permanent problem -- the elusive and omnipresent "human nature" comes to mind -- and its something everyone deals with and victim is implicitly undeserved of being free of it. We see people often explicitly say these, that bullying is just part of life and kids need to get toughen up for "real hardships" in society, which are -- of course -- also just natural and unchangeable. Which is actually true in a sense that abuse in childhood is indeed a discipline mechanism to create obedient adults...
Imagine you are a slave to an owner that holds multiple slaves. You are a little rebellious or show laziness at your work. Instead of punishing you, the slave owner punishes a fellow slave and dictates that if anyone disobeys, other slaves will get punished instead. So when anyone makes mistakes later, they will be punished from other slaves, by ostracization and physical violence. In this situation, are you guilty of putting your fellow slaves in harm's way? After all, they themselves tell you so, you made them skip meals, you made them get whipped, why are you not trying to be better, you are dragging everyone down..
We can obviously see the problem is slavery itself, but from a slave's perspective, that's not the easiest, such a thought is meticulously erased out of their minds. Instead of finding support and solidarity in one another, here slaves become each other's cops. They discipline one another while the slave owner rises as an omnipotent force. Eternal, unavoidable, undefatable. This is not true at all, of course, a slave owner is just fragile and mortal as any human ever and when slaves band and rebel together, owners indeed go down. "Together", that's the keyword, you can't rebel against to a system that enslaves many, the only way to liberation is stop being each other's cops and stand together instead. This is far easier said than done of course, unfortunately this method of indoctrination is all too common:
- It's how victims convince they are responsible for their abuse. They get punished for certain acts so if they just don't do them they won't be abused.
- It's how most religious institutes operate, it is just extremely convenient that God seems to punish based on rules that are incredibly beneficial to some groups of people.
- During economic crises, well-paid talking heads will make sure you to know that how immigrants or Jews are actually ruining everything. Don't mind bailing out banks with your taxes, paying astronomical amount of money on military and never, ever criticise capitalism. It's eternal, unavoidable, undefeatable...
- It's how bosses maintain obedient workers. Don't ask for better wages. Don't ask for better conditions. Don't ask for better. Don't ask even to get what you promised. If you do so, you will risk everyone's livelihoods. You will just give the boss an excuse to be even more crueller.
- Even people who think everyone deserves to get their basic needs fulfilled in the abstract might turn into valiant defenders of property like this. Sure, there is an enormous amount of wage theft going on, the wage labor relationship is itself oppressive and there is massive waste in service&retail sectors, but still the real problem must be those darn pirates, shoplifters, salvagers. How dare they don't pay and take care of their needs without any violence!
- This is why in mainstream eco-consciousness, there is so much focus on consumer choices. Even if you are aware that production is the real culprit of ecocide, it is just too far away, what can one do alone? No this is why, the common wisdom says, you should focus yourself on visible, minor issues like plastic straws and make sure to also divert everyone else's attention from real issues. You might just as well volunteer to be a security officer of an oil company.
- It's partially why internalized racism, sexism, transmisia exists. This doesn't happen explicitly as the other ones, but if they just become cops for their own identity, their oppressors might approve them eventually, in any case, it's much easier than going against your oppressors, a struggle that might take a life-time and give little in return...
We must never forget, it doesn't have to be like this. When we reject the easy temptation, when we stop becoming cops, we can become each other's healers, care-givers and protectors. It's never easy but If can truly manage to stand as one, no tyrant can stand for too long!...
This article is written thanks to my dearest Patrons and special thanks to: Acelin, Alexandra Morgan, Laura Watson and Spencer Gill.
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