Friday, February 24, 2017

[ralkzndf] Safe space and the War on Drugs

We clarify the parallels between "safe space", "consent culture", and the War on Drugs, responding to this comment on this old post:

Assuming the rules for "safe space" and "consent culture" are accompanied with punishments for breaking those rules, my suspicion is that those who will be on the receiving end of such punishments will again be the same minorities and marginalized classes disproportionately on the receiving end of punishments in the War on Drugs.

Two parts of the connection:

These marginalized groups are the ones that the privileged portion of society wants to see punished to the max.  They are "Them" (in Us versus Them); they are the Other.  Society (the privileged portion) does not ask for leniency when They are up for punishment like it asks for (and usually gets) when One Of Us is up for punishment.

Within these marginalized groups is a disproportionately large subset that society likes to deny opportunity, whether opportunities for legitimate jobs outside the illegal drug industry, or opportunities for social, romantic, or sexual interaction: "I don't want to be around this person."  Integral to a safe space violation or consent violation is someone saying "no", and many people choose to say "no" based on racial and social class prejudices.

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