Despite the grim developments, COVID-19 pandemic has offered us a chance to advocate social change.
The pandemic has helped make people recognise the need to cure an ailing society. The pandemic should awaken people to the realise that we require a just world, where competition is replaced by community bonds where associations mutual aid are being formed to provide food for the needy and help and support for the elderly and disabled. There exists solidarity among people in many parts of the world, and a growing understanding that we are all global citizens. The pandemic crisis is offering many opportunities to liberate ourselves and for us to envision a very different world.
Right-wing populists present a worldview and a clarity of purpose that can be alluring to their supporters. Using actual or exaggerated social problems and naming themselves as system’s “victims,” they use promises of restoring society to a mythical past, to override their followers’ sense of morality. COVID-19 is creating an abundance of events that can be perceived as inequal, from rising unemployment, reduced access to hospitals and shortages in medication, medical supplies, groceries and cleaning supplies. The multiple failures of governments to adequately resource public health and medical facilities, their history of neglecting and ignoring of the conditions for poor people, the homeless, disabled and chronically ill people offers openings for the exploitation of this crisis by a rich, privileged and powerful minority. It gives birth to the right’s opportunities to place the blame on scape-goats. Authoritarian accelerate crises to further their agendas. The demagogues are promoting a sense of fear and individual helplessness to create a monset and culture where people are susceptible to their ideology. They use immigrants, racial, ethnic and religious minorities, to distract public attention away from the failures of the capitalist system. Authoritarian organisations use emergencies as justifications for extremist measures to oppress marginalised communities. The right cannot prevail without our concessions and our compromises, our inaction, and the normalisation of extremism
Despite these grim developments, COVID-19 pandemic has offered us a chance to advocate social change. At this moment in time, socialist have to define that new society and call it forth. Socialists must urge fellow-workers moving forwards to a liberated future. Many people believe that nothing can be done to make change things, and therefore they become both complacent and apathic, making themselves complicit. To reach out to them we need greater clarity and be more visionary, describing the socialist system we propose to create for the more equitable distribution resources. We have to build the solidarity we need. We also need to push back against fear.
A new liberated society, lies just beyond the horizon. Let’s give it everything that we’ve got to reach it.
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