A place to be

“If we’re not progressive, who will be?” — Friend

“It is not my responsibility to compromise. That is the politicians’ jobs.” — Raj Patel

Although it’s been a few years since I heard these two quotes, they have always stayed with me. I completely agree with the sentiments –  society has and always will need people who are progressive. By definition, societal progress cannot happen if we’re always conservative*. History has shown us that humans are not willing to remain the same as they were 200, 1000, 10,000 years ago.

At the same time, society needs a variety of different actors. There are those who are radical, who push the envelope until most in society cannot understand why they would go to such extremes. There are those who are trying to preserve heritage and values that are essential for us to function with history in perspective. There are those who fit somewhere in between, making the compromises, bridge those who seek to change and those who seek to preserve. There are different actors on every tiny segment of this spectrum, and no peaceful change to societal structures can ever happen without everyone fully participating.

As for myself, I haven’t fully figured out my place in the spectrum and where I can have the most impact yet. I feel I’m somewhat of a bridge: progressive in thought, but extremely realistic in implementation/advocacy. While I thrive during intellectual debates, I ultimately am interested in theories because I want a more equal, just, sustainable, and (insert all the good development terms) society. There’s no use for theories if they cannot be implemented.

As my dad, who understands me more than I do sometimes, said to me recently (paraphrased), “You’re extremely idealistic, yet realistic. You’ve learnt to use logic to convince, yet still kept alive that empathy (感性).”

I like my place so far. I think it fits my personality quite well.

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* I’m not using progressive/conservative as labels in the Western politics sense.