If you think getting to the truth is hard, just wait until we get to trying to figure out reconciliation. —Murray Sinclair
There are no truths. Only stories. —Thomas King
Upon first glance these quotes might seem contradictory, but they both offer wisdom in the path toward reconciliation.
Reconciliation being the refounding and renewal of a relationship between equals. As with any relationship, I've come to realize empathy is key. We seek bids for support, we seek bids for attention, and we offer them and we reciprocate. When times get tough, when communication breaks down, we repair the relationship by putting in the effort to understand our partner's perspective. This can't be done without empathy, and we do it because we care about each other, and our relationship. Coming to terms with how bad the relationship has gotten and the injustices done along the way is the truth Murray Sinclair speaks of in the above quote. This is his wisdom.
The humility of empathy is Thomas King's wisdom: To renew the relationship we need to listen, even if it's to those we consider very different from us. I have spent a lot of time trying to relate, and care for (and about) many people very different than myself. What I've learned from my efforts is that it isn't easy: The more different people are from you, the harder work required to empathize—even to the point where you're theorizing models of their worldview just to catalyze an otherwise slow reaction of being able to put yourself in their shoes. I've also come to realize, the best way to learning their perspective is to engage their stories: Individually and comparatively, and to make those connections. Only then do you realize the importance of stories themselves: We will never achieve reconciliation if we can't even uphold each other's stories in good faith. They are the paths to empathizing with each other.
As for those who don't empathize, they isolate themselves into small social bubbles of similar people, never knowing more, never becoming more, but more prone to repeating histories of colonization. This is easy of course when you don't see the world the way the other does, or when you don't care about the things the other cares about.
In this blog I aim to collect and critique articles and links to technology and society from the lens of decolonization.
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I'll start with the 1989 classic White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. I intend to include a diversity of perspective writers, but ethics aren't only useful for those who have been wronged, who are seeking justice and fairness, ethics are for those in positions of power, and learning to be critical of yourself and to interrogate your own bias is the first step toward decolonization.