Neutrality doesn’t help. It kills.
We live in a culture of noninterference. To quote my parents and mentors:
“Stay out of trouble.”
“Mind your own business.”
“Don’t meddle in things that don’t concern you.”
It stems from basic survival, and to a certain degree, it’s necessary. As a daughter of immigrants, I know the consequences of voicing an opinion in other nations. For my parents, protesting in India could result in an extremist beating them up. Even in the United States with so-called “freedom of speech,” peaceful protesting results in arrest and legal fees.
But while police brutality and the broken legal system are major issues in the United States, it’s important to note that there are a significant number of individuals privileged enough to speak their mind without legal repercussions. And that’s where we have a problem.
Or to be more specific, a complicity problem.
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, complicity is defined as: “association or participation in or as if in a wrongful act.”
Or as social rights activist Desmond Tutu said: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”
Before the complicit population gets roasted, let’s make one thing clear. For some individuals, standing up for another, without jeopardizing their own safety, isn’t a possibility. Arguing with an unfair employer can result in termination, which subsequently endangers the worker’s dependents. Fighting off a gunman to prevent a robbery isn’t expected either, for self-evident reasons. These aren’t scenarios of complicity because individuals who want to intervene don’t have the means to do so.
But if you do hold power to change a situation, and you don’t, then you’re part of the problem. I have heard from too many sexual assault survivors whose friends refused to come to their support. I have read multiple accounts of mutual friends who turned on the survivor in favor of the assailant. I see individuals insisting that they must remain “neutral” in the situation, but in doing so, they refuse to support the narrative of the survivor. Yet, later I see them posting on Facebook about how they’re against sexual assault and how we need to fight rape culture.
This applies on a systemic level as well. From employment to the Greek System, the institutions that shape our everyday routines also discourage intervention. I read stories about Steubenville, Ohio, in which individuals witnessed a gang rape yet refused to stand up. I see videotaped racist incidences in which individuals are harassed in grocery stores for their religious affiliation. Where is the audience? The answer to that is usually “silent and unresponsive.”
When I asked some individuals why they didn’t stand up when someone said something racist or transphobic, they mention fear of blowback. They cite potential ostracization or a fear of feeling foolish. But none of those personal consequences are comparable to what they were witnessing, whether that be bigotry, sexism, or violence. We have a moral obligation to intervene in instances of discrimination. To those individuals who refuse to act, you are part of the problem. You are enabling injustices to occur and prevail. Interfering is always better than being an indifferent bystander.
Political apathy is a prime example of toxic complicity. Too many individuals refuse to vote (even during federal elections), stating, “Regardless of the outcome, it won’t affect me.” This opinion is both classist and privileged. Despite lack of dependency on government for basic services, you still pay taxes. You still have a stake, and if your stake is smaller, your socioeconomic factors and privileges are responsible for preventing you from needing governmental help. Your vote counts for individuals who are disenfranchised (ex-felons, undocumented immigrants, etc.), and a refusal to care enables their needs to be ignored, whether it be through funding cuts or enabling racist bigots to hold political office.
Global health is a prime example of why we need to actively care for other societies besides our own (societies which have also destabilized thanks to Western intervention). The discourse surrounding the federal budget for global health is reflective of a culture encouraging indifference. We have two choices: we can either allow public health problems to continue by refusing to act or we can implement sustainable solutions for the common good.
I speak to this on a larger level, a universal level. Hate crimes have escalated, partially due to the political climate. It is crucial that we reform this mentality of noninterference. We need to focus on being more proactive individuals rather than complying with the status quo.
So if you see something or even hear something, here’s a guide on what to do:
Step 1:
Stand up: vocalize your discomfort at someone’s bigotry/sexism/etc. Explain that you won’t tolerate it. Be that person who you wished would stand up for you in that situation.
Step 2:
None. Standing up is all it takes.
Deepika Dilip is a former Global Health Corps Intern and is now pursuing her Master’s Degree in Public Health at Columbia University’s Mailman School
