There is no good explanation for why they treat you this way. Its wrong, and its rooted in ableism and a desire to maintain the social hierarchy they've learned to derive meaning and self worth from. If they recognize that all of us should and could have our basic survival needs met without having to be exploited by people who don't care if we live or die, they'd have to give up feeling like they're better than people who are have less than them. That's uncomfortable for a lot of people, because finding a new source of identity and self worth that isn't one's job and income bracket is not easy. It takes a lot of questioning things we've had to take for granted to survive in this society, unlearning and changing beliefs that are harmful but familiar and comforting to us, and learning a new way to look at the world. It's worth doing, though.
This should radicalize you. That doesn't mean you have to engage in violence at all, there are all kinds of radical ways you can make difference that are focused on helping people and/or growing community. A radical mindset isn't inherently bad or violent, and in fact I would argue that a society built on exploitation and domination is itself inherently bad AND violent. A radical mindset is simply one that takes a radical departure from the assumed beliefs and ideas of a society. This society, especially the US, is built on white supremacy, patriarchy, and ableism, and a radical departure from that is not only ok, its a moral and ethical imperative and I could not do otherwise and believe myself to be a good person.
There is no good explanation for why they treat you this way. Its wrong, and its rooted in ableism and a desire to maintain the social hierarchy they've learned to derive meaning and self worth from. If they recognize that all of us should and could have our basic survival needs met without having to be exploited by people who don't care if we live or die, they'd have to give up feeling like they're better than people who are have less than them. That's uncomfortable for a lot of people, because finding a new source of identity and self worth that isn't one's job and income bracket is not easy. It takes a lot of questioning things we've had to take for granted to survive in this society, unlearning and changing beliefs that are harmful but familiar and comforting to us, and learning a new way to look at the world. It's worth doing, though. This should radicalize you. That doesn't mean you have to engage in violence at all, there are all kinds of radical ways you can make difference that are focused on helping people and/or growing community. A radical mindset isn't inherently bad or violent, and in fact I would argue that a society built on exploitation and domination is itself inherently bad AND violent. A radical mindset is simply one that takes a radical departure from the assumed beliefs and ideas of a society. This society, especially the US, is built on white supremacy, patriarchy, and ableism, and a radical departure from that is not only ok, its a moral and ethical imperative and I could not do otherwise and believe myself to be a good person.
