Tonight, I attended STAND UBC‘s Trade vs Aid in South Sudan panel. The panelists were Kuol Deng, Dr. Chris Erickson, and Veronica Fynn, and they provided many interesting and insightful comments. Unfortunately, we ran out of time before I could ask my question, so I figured I would post it here and then hope that they would perhaps respond to it in a comment, blog post, or some other means.
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results.
–Rita Mae Brown
At last year’s STAND panel, I asked this question to the panelists Adit, Dr. Arjun Chowdhury, and Joyce Murray. The response I got was along the lines of “apathy is not a problem”, so I’m going to ask essentially the same question again here, and hope for different results.
Earlier on the panel, Fynn mentioned that something we, as Canadians, need to do is to educate ourselves on the true states of countries around the world. That is, we should learn that the people of each country in Africa are not all starving and dying, but also that problems do exist in those people’s countries and those problems are complex. My question was in part spurred by this, in that people aren’t doing this and I want to know why.
As a member of STAND, I have participated in many activities such as tabling to help raise awareness of the situations in countries and regions such as Darfur, Congo, and South Sudan. But often people walk away, and I wonder if it’s because they lack the imagination and compassion to look beyond their own borders? But often people walk away, and I wonder if it’s because they think their textbooks need more attention than people in war zones? But often people walk away, and I wonder if it’s because they’re thinking “Bitch please, they think they’re hungry? I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast!”
But in all seriousness, very few people seem to be concerned about the going-ons in other parts of the world. In fact, very few people seem to be concerned about the going-ons in our own backyard. Last year, we saw the Occupy movement spring up, illustrating the discontent of the masses. Yet, Canada only had a 61% voter turn out in the May 2011 elections. I haven’t met anybody who has suggested there is something UBC can’t improve on, and clearly I think UBC has much to work on. Yet, UBC had only an 11% voter turn out in the 2011 AMS elections. (The polls for 2012 are open until 5:00 PM on Friday, January 27, 2012! I hope you all vote this year!) But even if people don’t respect other countries, their own countries, or their own school, surely they respect themselves, right? I’m not so sure, seeing as many of them express interest in bettering themselves, only to be indifferent about it 31 days later…
To me, this screams that apathy is a problem quite clearly evident in our population. My question for you (the panel and my readers), is do you think apathy is a problem? And if so, how do you suggest we break through that wall to get people to act?
No related posts.
I dont think apathy is a problem perse. I feel like there are just too many things we are being bombarded with these days, through the media/ advertisements that we’ve become disconnected to it. We feel that everything is sort of virtual and don’t understand or comprehend that events are actually happening around us. We see stuff on tv, on the internet..and there’s sort of a barrier between us and what’s happening since we’ve already seen numerous similar tragic/ terrible events. Also, people dont think that if act, they are able to change much. Plus, we’re too absorbed with our own life…and there are just too many levels of information we’re trying to comprehend…it just gets overwhelming…so…this not might make sense but i will end it here
Apathy (also called impassivity or perfunctoriness) is a state of indifference, or the suppression of emotions such as concern, excitement, motivation and passion.
What you just described… …would you call that apathy? That disconnect of people due to the media, that barrier between us and reality… …does that seem like a state of indifference or a suppression of concern?
To me, I see them as quite connected. I’m not saying that people choose to be apathetic, I’m just saying they are. Whether that is a result of the media, information overload, or self-absorption. In any case, I do see it as a problem. It’s almost like madness (colloquial) in that people aren’t responding to stimulus. If you prod somebody with an electric rod, they’re likely to do something about it, whether that’s moving away, hitting it out of your hand, or telling you to stop. If any of those don’t work, they’re probably going to try something else. But it seems that, looking back at society, when people are facing something they don’t like, they for the most part either ignore it or tell the root of the problem to stop. Usually, neither of these work, yet people don’t change their strategy. If people feel powerless like this, it seems to be a statement of their self-worth. That can’t be healthy, non?
haha i guess it would be called apathy! but yes, it is totally not healthy…and now the big question…how do we fix it?
It’s a big question for me, too
Thanks Tyler. It was great to see you last night. I know you’ve raised the concern several times. It is a genuine concern that need much more than response. I’m thinking something along the lines of interactive, debate or discussions around “Apathy”. We can only assume why people are apathetic but individuals has to take responsibility of what they “feed into their soul.” Of course, there is a systematic or structure attributes here – I think the media has a huge stake in it. I also think that naturally when something does not affect us directly, we can’t relate or we selectively choose not to relate. I can’t elaborate further but I would like for you and I to discuss this further because I’m thinking beyond asking the question…
Great talk, turnout and discussion. Thanks for inviting me.
I have raised it several times–I cannot fall to apathy in my search for an answer
I agree the media has a huge stake in it, but I also feel that society as a whole is the ultimate driver behind it all (as much as society probably won’t want to blame itself for such a big problem).
It will be an interesting topic of conversation! Hopefully we can put together something to address this problem!
Glad you enjoyed it
Thanks for participating!
Hey Tyler, just remember that what YOU do with STAND, your blog and other areas in your life affects others – like me, for example! People are inspired by what you do as an individual, unfortunately not to the extent that you or I hope for, but never give up on it
because even small positive changes are important.
how do you suggest we break through that wall to get people to act?
– come to The Briefing 2013; tonight was awesome
[...] CommunicationAlthough, unlike AJ, I believe in student apathy… [...]
Obviously apathy is a problem.
I think you’re right saying people would rather study textbooks – at McGill, it’s reflected in people’s programs. Arts students tend to be very involved with the community, both McGill and Montreal, but Science and Engineering kids would rather study hard and get into med school/ do well in school. I understand that sentiment, but it’s really hard to get them to care when the reason they go to university is just to get a good job that pays well. A lot of students DO get involved, and are not apathetic, but like everywhere else, I’m sure that’s just a section of the population.