Building Bridges is the Key to Stop the Reactionary Tide

Dear Left, We Need to Build Bridges, Not Burn Them!

Katie: You often say you are very concerned with the rise of the reactionary populist right and its culture warrior politics. You know, the left is actively fighting this. Do you see them as fellow travelers, then?

Tara: Yes and no. Yes to the extent that we should all speak up on the threat of rising authoritarianism, in whatever way we can. But also no, because firstly, I think what the left is doing could be counterproductive, and secondly, the left's failure to keep its own authoritarians in check discredits their whole effort.

Katie: Where do you think the left is being counterproductive?

Tara: The first thing is building bridges. I believe the best way to resolve our political polarization, which would be the key to stop the rise of all kinds of extremism, is to build bridges. This is why I actually want to build bridges with people who have different views. However, with the way the left is right now, it isn't easy at all. It's like how some people already have a pre-conceived notion of what I believe in, based on their impression of some of the things that I've said, even though they don't actually understand my position. It happens on both the left and the right, but to be honest, I've encountered a lot more of it on the left, especially in the past decade.

Katie: Can you give some examples of what you're talking about?

Tara: It's like how some people who identify as 'leftists' would automatically assume that I'm the 'enemy', just because I've described my politics using words like 'centrist', 'moderate', 'classical liberal' or 'libertarian'. I think that's very tribalist. I use these labels because I think they help me describe for others where I'm coming from, and the philosophical traditions that have influenced me. But I think using labels to automatically exclude people is very unhealthily tribalistic. It also makes building bridges basically impossible.

Katie: Could it be because they have had bad experiences with people who identify with those labels, especially those who do so in bad faith?

Tara: I think that could be part of the reason. Like every true libertarian I know is very frustrated with the populist right's attempt to hijack that label these days. Some populist right influencers have also self-identified as centrist, moderate, or even classical liberal, during various phases of their evolution. However, just because questionable people self-identify with these ideologies, it doesn't make these ideologies bad. We have no choice as to who chooses to identify with what label, and short of just ceding the whole ideology to these bad actors, which I believe would be a big mistake, there is no way we can fix this situation. On the other hand, I think it is still incumbent upon everyone who wants to participate in the political discourse, to learn the truth for themselves, rather than just rely on mistaken stereotypes as an excuse to refuse to build bridges. Which means my criticism of the left still stands.