Forum Post: we are letting them win

Those in power have had a long time to perfect the art of diffusing social movements. They know very well how to do it. the most effective tactic they have is the time honored saying: divide and conquer.

We spend much time arguing over whether those who fight with fists or with laws, with symbolic spectacle or direct action, are the true warriors of our cause. Established powers wish that we will turn on one another and fracture over these pety differences. Those culpable for these fractures are not those who stray from the accepted tactics of struggle, but those who let these tactical differences turn our struggle inward, from revolution into witch hunt.

whether you wear black or tie dye, we fight the same system of slavery and injustice. we have our differences in philosophy, to be sure, and these differences will only become more pronounced over time, but with the gift of dialogue, we have the opportunity to discuss them—not as enemies, but as friends. We fight the same battle: against the imperialist and hierarchical system of domination that steals from us in the "first world" while enslaving the majority of humanity, and all of the non-human beings on Earth. This battle is not just for us, but for them, and they thank us for every ounce of power we take away from the powerful.

We spend all our time arguing over whether the media will use our images to turn others against us, but this argument turns us against ourselves. We are the guilty ones.

So are the media of course. We must learn to see our struggle as more than our image in the fun-house mirror. We know what we have seen, the lies they have told, and the commonality between us. If we know they are lying, how do we allow ourselves to take accept these lies as truth, simply because we think others might too? Stay in solidarity instead, and show the world that we can overcome their strategy to destroy us. If we stand together, and accept that we have many different manifestations, that there is no one movement, but as many movements as there are people, we can rise above the definitions they seek to stamp on us.

If we support one another because of our common struggle, we can win. If we allow power to turn us against ourselves, we will get nowhere.