The Toxicity of Woke Culture
When political activism is based on destructive emotions, we all lose
“Toxic” is a word very much in fashion these days. In progressive circles, it is common to hear talk about toxic masculinity, toxic relationships or even toxic people. But calling people ‘toxic’ is confrontational and detrimental to their self-esteem.
Nobody considers whether some of the tactics of political movements may be also toxic. In particular, modern activists have weaponized destructive emotions like anger, fear, guilt and shame and use them indiscriminately. I argue in this article that this is counterproductive and, in some cases, unethical. By seeping themselves in an environment of emotional negativity, activists are wasting their own energy and poisoning the minds of anybody that reaches to them.
My education in political activism
I was brought up in the conservative Catholic organization Opus Dei. After leaving the Catholic faith at 15, my political awakening took place in college. Those years — 1975 to 1980 — were when Spain was transitioning from the Franco fascist dictatorship to democracy, and the university was a cauldron of political activism. I was not only educated by my professors but also by my class-mates who militated in various socialist, communist or…
