One of the highest forms of political correctness on the left is not being allowed to be critical of the directions of mass movements. If people are on the street, it must be righteous. Questioning direction = denying agency. That doesn’t bode well for me given my research lol

One of the key points I came to in doing my research on revolutions in the past is that people can have fully legitimate grievances, but the movement can still be driven by reactionary forces. If the left is weak, in particular. Reactionaries are better funded/backed.

However the left sometimes confuses observation w/ normative claims. Those of us skeptical toward a mass movement’s direction aren’t denying people’s right to protest or even disagreeing w/ them. We just delineate btwn revolutionary movement (protest) & progressive change.

If we are not allowed to question a movement’s strategy or direction without being smeared or misread, it shows the left’s inability for self criticism and a preference for romanticism of any aesthetics related to dissent. It’s not good.

Protests are always made up of diverse groups, so I am wary of blanket endorsements without evaluating alternatives proposed by protestors. Critiques are not personal attacks on individuals participating who are likely sincere. It’s just standard leftist self criticism.