From Hell to Paradise
From Hell to Paradise
How our best qualities can emerge during this crisis
• ARE YOU SCARED? You should be. The election is two weeks away. The economy is tanked. Covid-19 cases are surging, and projected to reach almost 3,000 a day by late December.
Joseph Biden is overwhelmingly likely to win, yet we already hear claims that the election will be rigged. You can address the very real possibility of Trumpist election fraud by reading “Get Prepared,” from choosedemocracy.us, a brief and practical guide to stopping a coup attempt or power grab.
Short version: talk to five people ahead of time, plan to mobilize together, and if vote counting is stopped or manipulated, take to the streets immediately. Speedy reaction and mass demonstrations are crucial. Election stealing and coup attempts have been stopped all over the world (Turkey ‘15, Argentina ’87, France ’61) by civilians acting collectively in the first day or two. Don’t wait for authorities or leaders to decide what to do.
•And amid this crucial moment of work, survival, and stress, don’t forget to take a breath, to pause, and to regenerate the strength you will need in the months ahead.
I myself have become curiously devoted to small projects that symbolize regeneration: repairing my leather hiking boots, rebuilding an old gate, staining a cabinet built by my grandfather. Quarantine has been full of dark times, and I compensate by finally learning to tie that fly fishing knot I’ve been trying to learn twenty years. These are not idle distractions, but reminders that we do have control. If only to make yourself stronger, pause. Reorganize the closet. Get some fresh air. 2020 is not over yet. You will need your strength.
• Rebecca Solnit writes about the many positive uses of disaster in her book, “A Paradise Built in Hell.” Her theme is the almost utopian aspect of social transformation and justice that emerges during disasters. But she focusses mostly on earthquakes, fires, and hurricanes, which are themselves blameless. We live now amid man-made emergencies, which are more complex.
Yet I’ve seen the same qualities she describes—altruism, community, and a clear sense of positive purpose—in the conflict zones and war-ravaged countries where I’ve worked. Looking at exceptional situations, Solnit spies “extraordinary communities that arise in disaster.” I reply that everyday life is a disaster in the slums of Rio, or rural Cambodia. And that I have never seen stronger or more resilient people than in the places where life is most under pressure. Little utopias are squeezed from bitter fruit.
Solnit’s 2009 book is prescient, reminding us how we actually come together in a crisis. I’ve focussed on the authoritarian movement in America, with its doomsday instincts. The ultra-rightist elements in our society believe that America is falling apart, and that only they, with their guns and flags, will survive. Evangelical Christian churches are increasingly apocalyptic. The militia movement is mobilizing everywhere to fight imaginary enemies (The Caravan, The Cartels, MS-13 home invasions, BLM looters, Antifa arsonists, liberal elite pedophile satanist cabals). This vigilante movement is built around “prepping” for armageddon, and laced with visions of civil war. It is all predicated on the conviction that American society will break down, into mass chaos, crime, and a selfish struggle for the survival of the strong.
That’s not how Americans react to emergencies, according to Solnit, and that’s not what I’ve seen in other countries. Sure, I’ve witnessed grim scenes of street gangs and insurgents exploiting people in Asia and Latin America. But I’ve seen far more strength and solidarity. I’ve seen civil societies rise in Argentina and Mali and Bolivia, to resist domination or violent extremism. I’ve seen everyday survivors in Rio celebrate the sunset, and barefoot farmers laugh in high Bolivia. Solnit is right, and the apocalyptic American cult of violence is wrong. There is hope in misfortune. There is strength and generosity in us yet.
I’ve seen it abroad, in Haiti and Venezuela, and I’ve seen it at home, during earthquakes, and in my personal case, the Sept. 11 attacks and the great northeast blackout a few years later. We react to crisis with strength, love, and more democracy. We can do this.
• If you are a paid subscriber, you’ll get a section from my book in progress where I tackle Solnit’s ideas and apply them to American authoritarians during 2020 and beyond. This is a draft, and I would appreciate your feedback and suggestions. As the book progresses, I’ll need your help reading and critiquing sections like this. So …
Take a breath, then read, vote, and organize for democracy. This authoritarian movement is not going away in two weeks, and the right-wing agents of chaos and gun-toting extremists will still be here after January, 2021. Your are going to need your strength.