“Ignorance is bliss” is a phrase that entails the truth within modern-day American society and can be applied to many factors that contribute to the structure of humanity. The actions people take for their own benefit both directly and indirectly affect those around them, whether they acknowledge it or not. In any community, there are always going to be conflicting viewpoints on controversial issues. Whilst it is rather unrealistic to force people to change, you can hold them accountable for their actions.
Societal change is defined as “the way in which human interactions, relationships, behavior patterns, and cultural norms change over time” (UoPeople 2). In theory, if “smaller” changes are made and implemented in communities in a larger area (i.e. a country), then a bigger change will be present in the long run. Society and time progression have a directly proportional relationship: as time goes on, society changes with it. The reason how change occurs is through interacting with others and the movements that arise from these interactions. Without a doubt, it is quite clear that social justice has many factors attributing to it, thus making it complex. This is why small steps to alter communities can make a bigger change in the long run.
To further elaborate on a few of the variables that affect social change, all of them stem from the way societies function from natural and anthropogenic sources. To start, demographic transition plays a primary role in determining what type of community revolves around a certain group of people. Is there access to technology around where you live? Is your area more industrialized than others? A more developed area that has gone through the industrialized state of demographic transition typically is of higher socioeconomic class. This leads to another factor that some say contributes to societal change: economic progress. The two most popular economic systems of conversation are communism and capitalism; moreover, how they relate to the social inequality that is present to this day. The government plays a direct role in the way we vote, elect our future leaders, view legislation and rules, and enact towards the retaliations to these decisions. For example, new legislation is constantly coming and going. Some of the legislation passed revolves around the environment and potential solutions to modern-day environmental issues. If there is change in the environment, then there could be large-scale consequences as a result such as famine, pandemics, poverty, and much more that relate to societal inequality.
The term “social change” in itself has many meanings and connotations like social justice, social activism, civic engagement, civic dialogue, community building, social capital, community development, and cultural variation just to name a few. All of these aspects are constantly changing as society progresses, regardless of where one is located geographically speaking. However, globalization and technological advances have allowed societal change to happen in unpredictable ways. Humans nowadays are connected through social media and the power of the Internet. While this has its pros and cons, it forms the way local communities can be informed and act on global challenges.
Over the past year or so, there has been a social justice movement occurring with regards to bringing awareness to marginalized groups within the United States. Protests have occurred throughout the nation to put pressure on the government to mandate systemic change. Yet, taking action for some has been rather difficult because of the limitations of the pandemic. An alternative for in-person education, protesting, and other forms of advocating have been providing webinars and lectures through Zoom or other platforms. These sessions are typically held by professors or other significant leaders depending on their interest in the subject (i.e. systemic racism, environmental justice, etc). While this interconnectedness throughout the world can be achieved through the advancement of technology, how much good is it truly doing? When will we reach the point in which these webinars and informational lectures are going to become meaningless overload?
It has become a grave concern that the educational output of these significant present-day dilemmas may become normalized to the point where people do not attend and/or it blows over as “just a phase”. While society is making progress in normalizing diversity and raising awareness on significant problems through the utilization of social media, there are always going to be that handful of people who could care less. Similarly, there has been an increased amount of infographics on various platforms of social media for societal and environmental justice. However, it is apparent that those who are genuinely inclined to learn more about these topics are the people who will take action. Rather, the people who skim over the informational posts are most likely the people who are part of the problem. It is going to be challenging to find a fine between no education and so much education to the point where it becomes useless.
Steering more towards physical attributions to the need for change, there are certain regions in the world that experience more geographic racial isolation more than others. Humans tend to group together based on their similarities rather than their differences. Thus, they are going to have similar life experiences and perhaps may not be aware of what others go through. For some, it can be difficult to imagine that others may experience different things than themselves. It takes an open mind to be able to understand and empathize with others. Most people firmly believe that this is one of the primary reasons for conflict: the lack of perspective. The lack of perspective also happens to correspond with selfishness in which one will only attest to their life and their experiences. It requires a sense of vulnerability to discuss such issues, and that is something that is not normalized in society.
In order to make local change in your community, racism needs to be addressed. Now, there are not always going to be evident and extremely shocking examples in your community like the ones you would see on the news. However, there are minor systemic procedures that contribute to a less diverse community. For example, you may notice in educational facilities that the curriculum is steered away from minority groups. Within schools, there are English classes that you most likely have to read books in. How many of those books are written by people of color? Changing the structure of the educational system is one small step towards a bigger shift in society and culture. To put it succinctly, mandating a diverse curriculum can help amplify the voices of those who have been long suppressed. Along with this, some other ideas include schools hiring more minorities as faculty members and approving a social justice curriculum.
Another major topic to address in local communities is white privilege: “Inherent advantages possessed by a white person on the basis of their race in a society characterized by racial inequality and injustice.” It goes a long way for citizens of a community to even acknowledge its existence. A major issue to tackle regarding this, though, is that some will not feel compelled to change their mindset or actions because white supremacy benefits them. Thus, changing the societal system in various communities can make an international shift in tackling social justice. It is also important to note that privilege and racism are not synonymous terms. For example, it is apparent that socioeconomic classes and race are interconnected in which African Americans and Indigenous people have higher poverty rates than white people due to structural racism: “African Americans represent thirteen percent of the general population [in the United States] but account for 39 percent of people experiencing homelessness and more than fifty percent of homeless families with children” (National Alliance to End Homelessness 2). By acknowledging and understanding privilege, we can empathize with one another and then pursue actions to create structural reform.
It is also worth highlighting that just because there is diversity in a room does not mean it is inclusive. The attitudes of others determine whether the environment is inclusive or not. There could be twenty different people in one space, all of which are of a different race. This forms a diverse array of people but does not necessarily correspond to respectful and accepting conditions. In your local community, you can make sure that people are feeling comfortable with both their personal and public identity by simply having a conversation about it and recognizing what you as an individual can do to make them feel more accepted.
To reiterate, you cannot mandate people to change, however, you can hold them accountable. If change is not organic, it will not be sustainable. There are a multitude of factors that attribute to societal change on an international level which begins in local communities. Perhaps communicating with others in order to keep an open mind can allow us to grow and gain various perspectives to understand the world at large. The little actions make a profound impact in local communities, especially if several people are making the constant effort. Despite controversial conversations being uncomfortable for some people to hold, these conversations allow people to grow. People do not grow and mature when they are constantly in comfortable positions. Being a bystander and not taking action can potentially do more harm than the person performing the action. Being an active ally takes courage, and standing up for someone in need truly can make a difference.
References and Further Reading
“Homelessness and Racial Disparities.” National Alliance to End Homelessness, 1 Apr. 2021, endhomelessness.org/homelessness-in-america/what-causes-homelessness/inequality/.
Lewison, Kiera. “What Is Social Change And Why Take It Seriously?” University of the People, 25 May 2020, www.uopeople.edu/blog/what-is-social-change/#:~:text=Social%20change%20can%20be%20defined,cultural%20norms%20change%20over%20time.&text=This%20is%20why%20social%20change,cannot%20progress%20as%20a%20society.