Welcome to my blog, The Bashful Activist. It is still in the process of being beautified, so bear with me while I make that happen. In the meantime, here’s a description of what this blog is for.
At its simplest level, it is an attempt to share information about and experiences of living as ‘sustainably’ as possible in London, UK, where I am from and live. A recent convert to the idea of sustainability in its various modes, I follow a lot of interesting and inspiring blogs from all round the globe, however many of them document the journeys of those living in rural areas where true self-reliance is possible, or in urban locations that are far more advanced in terms of sustainability. So I thought I would start my own small information hub here, for those in a similar situation.
As the blog’s title suggests however, it will also house general thoughts on ‘activism’, and explore why, despite the worrying or upsetting or irritating information we are bombarded with daily, ‘activism’ – humanitarian, environmental, legal, otherwise – is still seen as the preserve of radicals, students or modern-day saints.
It’s undeniable that activism in the ‘traditional’ sense often seems incompatible with the lives most people lead. Most people probably don’t have the means to dedicate themselves to full- or even part-time change-making, particularly as it doesn't often follows a schedule you can plan for in advance. It’s also hard to deny that there are ‘traditional’ activists out there who are unwilling or simply unable - despite their strong convictions that they are doing something good - to share this conviction with ‘normal’ people and thereby introduce these convictions into the mainstream. Perhaps it’s down to some sort of snobbism, or maybe it’s just because they are so caught up in what they are doing; either way I believe it can give the impression of a volunteer/activist ‘elite’ shut off to the average citizen.
That said, history shows that normal people can start something monumental. Rosa Parks is an obvious example; her simple act of sitting where she wasn't supposed to sit played a central part in the American civil rights movement. Which convinces me that ‘activism’ is not the sole preserve of the great and the good. The more people view themselves as capable of demanding and enforcing change at a grass-roots level, the more likely we are to succeed in creating a future worth looking forward to.
As the wife of an acquaintance advised me not long ago, it’s about understanding what you can do, and doing it, instead of feeling demoralised or debilitated by what you can’t do, for whatever reason.
