The Anti-Teacher Movement and George Floyd
A reader brings this to my attention. His friend, Chenyuan Snider, was raised in China, and she witnessed events parallel to the rioting and looting the Establishment is currently orchestrating here in America and overseas. I reprint it here with her permission. The words below are hers.
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When I was a first grader, there was a new political movement initiated by the Communist Party in China – the anti-teacher movement. It was precipitated by a tragic incident in which a student in China’s remote countryside attempted suicide because of mistreatment by her teacher.
Overnight, all teachers in China were considered evil by virtue of being teachers.
As students, we were ordered by the authorities to write about our teachers’ unscrupulous behavior towards us. It was mandatory. Every student had to write a condemnation about his own teacher on a poster and paste it on the wall.
The bigger the poster and the longer the criticism, the holier the student became. In other words, the more a teacher was vilified, the more righteous the student appeared.
There was no time for anyone to process and digest the new situation because it came like a huge wave engulfing everyone.
During my time growing up in China, there were several movements during which one group was set up against another. These movements had proven to be enormously effective for the communist government to consolidate power. In the process, enemies were eliminated.
It is a very complicated subject. Any attempt here to explain it would take too much space.
In recent years, I have seen a similar tactic at work in the U.S. political arena in which different people are pitted against each other.
Throughout history, wherever there are humans, there is injustice. However, when events are interpreted not as the fault of individuals, but rather, as a fault of a certain group, it creates hostility between large numbers of people.
Through propaganda and political correctness one group can claim ascendant status over another. But this does not resolve the issues.
In reality, tension from both sides continues to build up and intensify, which in turn produces more injustice and opposition.
The justice that is due to the true victim is often buried in the larger struggle between groups. In the end, the victim is used as a prop serving the purpose of fighting the opposition.
Why does injustice initiated by individuals escalate into conflicts between groups? If the true victim does not profit from the race/group struggle, who reaps the benefit?
Thinking back, I realize, though the manifestation of the struggle here is different from that in China, the spirit behind it shares the same identity.
It is not motivated by maintaining justice, but by political aspirations.
The ones who benefit most from the phenomena are certain types of politicians who intend to take the opportunity to rally behind one people-group. Through inciting their emotions and providing support, they are able to gain trust of the whole people-group, and thus, acquire mass patronage.
Further, for those politicians, resolving the tension, conflict or maintaining justice is never their purpose. They have no interest in achieving justice. Instead, they want to cause division and chaos which can create the conditions for them to manipulate people and gain more power and control.
Ultimately, they aspire to remake the political system to increase their power and control over our lives. That’s why under their instigation, reconciliation and justice are never attained. Rather, discrimination and aggression flourish.
In the wake of the tragic death of George Floyd, we must not allow politicians to sacrifice him on the altar of their political ambition. We must uphold the law and demand justice. Setting groups up against each other does not lead to justice.
I witnessed such vile practice when I was young. Don’t fall into that terrible trap.
Honor Mr. Floyd by rendering him the justice that is due to him.
About John C Wright
John C. Wright is a practicing philosopher, a retired attorney, newspaperman, and newspaper editor, and a published author of science fiction. Once a Houyhnhnm, he was expelled from the august ranks of purely rational beings when he fell in love; but retains an honorary title.
