How Does Fear Impact A Democracy?
Fear is the bi product of cancel culture and wokness, and fear is what alters the truth. Avoiding difficult topics is avoiding the truth, because the truth is that difficult topics exist and are unavoidable. Reluctance to speak, write, or act on certain topics will alter authenticity and accuracy. When society does not receive the entire truth, we will not be able to understand the complexity of issues that exist. We will become accustomed to weakened, avoidant opinions and ideas that don't accurately resemble the reality of the world we live in. You, along with the rest of society, will bear the effects of a country that does not value reality. We’ve seen movements fall apart as people create their own reality based on fear or performance. For example, the BLM movement became diluted after people began to engage in performative activism out of fear of being canceled. In this case, a movement that was created to highlight racial injustice became just another internet argument that further polarized groups of people. But regardless of the reality you choose to live in, whether it is a product of your privilege or a choice, you should not censor what you know is true simply because it is not a part of the world you have curated for yourself. In Timothy Snyder’s book, On Tyranny, he states, “ to abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis upon which to do so” (Snyder 65). Once we have lost the ability to criticize those in power, as well as our ability to understand the truth, we have lost access to our freedom. When freedom is lost, democracy follows. When our democracy becomes unstable, society will become increasingly vulnerable to authoritarian practices. As a society, We need to understand and discuss challenging ideas presented, not mark them with a trigger warning or outlaw their existence. Because a democracy thrives on open and free discourse, we should provide an equal platform to the unpopular or detested opinions of society. Its important that we understand the ways in which fear control our reality, and how we can avoid self censorship in order to reestablish our freedom and strengthen our democracy.