As an advisory committee member for the Wabash Democracy and Public Discourse Initiative, Jay Williams has been a strong vocal and financial supporter of this College student program since its inception.
Advocacy stirs emotions.
It’s imbued with energy and edginess.
It represents the good and the not so good.
Important, necessary, courageous. Polarizing, relentless, intolerant.
Advocacy transforms private concerns into public issues. It uncovers secret injustices and exposes them to the light of public scrutiny. Often seen as an unwelcome prophet, it is the enemy of the status quo and a friend to honesty and reality.
Advocacy isn’t simply an essential component of democracy; it’s an indispensable ingredient of a well-lived life.
Here’s a truth. You are an advocate. You just may not realize it, or perhaps your moment of advocacy has not yet arrived. But it will.
You may have intervened when your child was being poorly treated at school, or made a political point during a dinner conversation at the risk of ruffling a few feathers. If so, you’ve tested the waters of advocacy.
Honest advocates are essential to stimulate conversation and move discourse forward. The better advocates are well informed, as they are often closest to the problem and most impacted by policies, regulations, or events related to it. Unlike casual observers and commentators, right-minded advocates do their research before expending their energy to promote a different outcome.
Advocates have changed the course of history. Patrick Henry, Abraham Lincoln, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Winston Churchill, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., and Nelson Mandela espoused unpopular, sometimes dangerous positions, to combat injustices. Often they struggled alone; any accolades came much later.
Advocacy is hard work that may fail, but even everyday efforts can spawn movements. Three years ago I joined other advocates to raise awareness and mobilize citizens to battle a planned, oversized commercial and apartment complex at the edge of Charleston, SC’s historic district. Soon after, similarly inspired neighborhood defenders blocked a well-financed scheme to move historic houses to pave the way for a parking garage.
Despite the odds, people working together can accomplish important things.
There’s a dark side to advocacy. Some advocates for a cause are combative and have little concern about the honesty or truthfulness of their arguments. They dismiss the opinions of others and ignore the personal, social, and financial harm they may inflict on their rivals. For such zealots, the end justifies the means.
This darker side has gained significant momentum. The financial decline of newspapers and traditional media and the disappearance of many professional journalists who served as a moderating force is one reason. Additionally, there’s the scourge of “agenda journalism,” epitomized last year by Rolling Stone’s fabricated rape story.
The explosive rise of “me-focused” social media, abetted by rude commenters masked by pseudonyms, has further desensitized public discourse. This crowdhazing can chill free speech.
As a consequence, we’ve entered a new Age of Intolerance; public discussions have been replaced by derision, conversations by argument. This Age of Intolerance undermines our society, our communities, even our personal lives.
So honest advocates must lead. To restore discourse, create solutions, and accomplish necessary and great things, we must find common ground with those with whom we disagree. We must focus on issues and reject personal attacks. We can advocate, we can press our point-of-view, but we must also listen to and respect the opinions of others.
Listening is what’s missing now.
We are talking over each other as the politics of deliberate divisiveness take hold. To advocate successfully, even on personal matters, we must listen to others and understand their viewpoints.
Only then will they respect ours.
Fortunately, the Wabash Democracy and Public Discourse Fellows are learning to facilitate productive group discussions among community leaders. At one recent meeting, two political opponents became angry and combative. The student moderator navigated through harsh words to encourage constructive engagement and to find common ground. Impressed with the student’s ability to steer the group “beyond politics as usual,” one of the leaders felt moved to reconsider how political opponents could reconnect over shared concerns. As a result, these sharply divided leaders joined one another for lunch and conversation, scoring a victory for productive, if passionate, dialogue.
This important Wabash Democracy and Public Discourse Initiative flows from an understanding and respect for our First Amendment rights and the corresponding responsibility of every individual to contribute to the marketplace of ideas.
Legendary Wabash speech professor W. Norwood Brigance wrote, “Why speak? To keep a society free.” He knew the importance of speech, of advocacy, and of open discussion and debate to settle differences by talk instead of force. Without honest speech, force becomes an all too attractive option.
We must start with ourselves. We must start small. Let us advocate for our family, friends, and community. Focus on the constructive and doable, speak out and advocate for solutions that work for the majority, and build on our accomplishments. If we work together on these smaller things, someday we’ll be prepared to accomplish those larger, greater things once again.
Jay Williams Jr. is president of Broadcasting Unlimited Inc. and trustee of Wabash College.