thinking about toxic positivity in environmentalism https://twitter.com/barackobama/status/1357743471885484032
It’s in vogue to caution against how “doomerism” can engender apathy, but we rarely grapple with the way that positivity does this as well and, arguably, more effectively.
I can’t count how many people in the climate and animal rights movements I’ve seen driven to irony-poisoning or even insanity by the futility of trying to get people to care. This guy is a high-profile example. I can’t stand his feed, but I feel for him. https://www.propublica.org/article/the-climate-crisis-is-worse-than-you-can-imagine-heres-what-happens-if-you-try
The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try.

A climate scientist spent years trying to get people to pay attention to the disaster ahead. His wife is exhausted. His older son thinks there’s no future. And nobody but him will use the outdoor…

https://www.propublica.org/article/the-climate-crisis-is-worse-than-you-can-imagine-heres-what-happens-if-you-try
We cast the doomers as the bad guys, ruining our communication strategies, making us look bad, promoting apathy and misanthropy... But what if the toxic positivity of our culture plays a role in making them that way?
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