What is Representation?

Recent years have seen inspiring uprisings and mass mobilizations against racial, ethnic and gender-based oppression. One of the responses to this surge in activity has been a rise in a right-wing populism that has sought to defend established hierarchies of power through appeals to violence, often couched in the language of “law and order.” But we have also seen forward-looking elements of the ruling class respond to these movements with calls for more diverse representation within the existing status quo. While this seems like a reasonable and positive development for many people, it is important to understand the motives of those pursuing these strategies, and the limits and risks that they ultimately pose. In this video, we take a look at the concept and history of representation, and the role that it has played in (re)producing the world we live in today.

This article was posted on Wednesday, March 10th, 2021 at 4:45pm and is filed under Anarchism, Colonialism, Democracy, Statism, Video.