Silence as a Strategy

In her essay, Ann Russo says, “when I first got involved in the feminist movement, I felt compelled to speak to everything and everybody.  Speaking was my resistance.”  In today’s social media driven society, our voice as a weapon runs rampant.  We share our thoughts on the political atmosphere of our country, if global warming is real, to lesser issues, like inflated footballs and what color is the dress.  Like Russo in her early years of fighting injustices, our voices can be seen to some degree or another. 

One area that comes to mind where voices can be heard and seen is in regard to the Black Lives Matter movement (BLM).  What started as a hashtag in 2012 has quickly become engrained in our everyday vernacular and the center for a large-scale controversy that currently plagues the United States.  One side standing up for the injustices toward blacks; the other calling it reverse racism toward whites.  One can scroll through Facebook posts and comments and find hundreds upon hundreds of each that can be divided among the two sides. As a 40-year-old white female, this movement was the first time I had heard the phrase, “silence is violence.”  I began to associate the actions of those pro-BLM with this phrase because they were choosing to stand and take a stance on the issue, rather than sit idly by and allow police abuse to continue. Martin Luther King, Jr. had said, “Society’s punishments are small compared to the wounds we inflict on our soul when we look the other way.”  Not wanting to be a part of the problem, but a part of the solution, many began to speak up and not remain silent.  Anything said was a check for taking a stance and breaking the cycle.  That is, until the stance is taken too far and speaking up is no longer an effective strategy to promote the cause

On social media, it is easy to find videos of people practicing this power of “resistance” as Russo referred to.  In one particular video, where speaking up became a punch in the gut to the cause, a black woman is heard shouting to the person filming, “kill on the white babies.  Kill your grandchildren!”  For an issue that is strongly divided into two camps, the video started to make the rounds as a weapon to be used against the BLM movement. (video of said incident)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8R_oalNRes

In many instances and when used appropriately, speaking up is a necessity and a strategy to propel a cause.  However, there are times with silence is better and can also be used as a strategy.  For example, the Little Rock Nine comes to mind.  The group was made up of nine African American girls who were attempting to enter a segregated high school.  In this image below, Elizabeth Eckford, 15, is seen holding her school books and walking away as a white woman screams at the girls from behind.  As to not engage and create more tensions, the group remain silent and pursue their objective.  Speaking up would have only enflamed the situation more, possibly causing a riot.

(1957, Little Rock Nine)

As read in Russo's, Between Speech and Silence, she realized over time and through continued education that speaking out about anything and everything wasn't always the best strategy.  There are times where it is required and there are times when silence is the better tactic.  Practicing silence is a way to control one's self, as well as to slow down and take into account all information before spouting off with an ungrounded argument.  In the example above of the woman shouting, "kill all the white babies," though she may have been justified with her anger and rage toward the camera man (who we don't see nor know what occurred prior to the recording), she had an opportunity to help her cause by remaining calm and in control.  Had she done so, her voice would not be associated with the other side of the controversy, using her lack of control as fuel to fill their fire, aka justification, for their position.