There it was. This short video from a TV news broadcast forwarded by one of my wechat acquaintances. Making all the way from Europe to China. I was mesmerized at first. Such a young and valiant little woman. How brave. How smart. But then my admiration yielded to a feeling that after all Greta Thunberg plays the violin of populism without even knowing it. But that’s the trap of populism to populists young and old: you only understand the ghosts that you have called upon when it is too late.
Green populism, is still populism. One which builds up and builds on resentments against a certain part of society. One which creates an in-group and rallies against an out-group. And so I began to dislike her idea of anti-climate strikes. I realized that I am part of the out-group she rallies against. Not because of my intentions – I am probably more of an environmentalist than her – but because of my age. Greta Thunberg wages a war of generations. She unites the frustration of the young against the fears of the old.
And then I recalled that we had all this in a different color not too long ago. Young folks taking to the streets, waving little red bibles into the faces of the senior establishment for the sake of turning society upside down. Later, they would beat their elders up and disgrace them in public. They would trample on and destroy what had been built by their forefathers. We don’t need this, how tempting it might be. We need a solution which includes us all.
Further reading:
Green populism, is still populism. One which builds up and builds on resentments against a certain part of society. One which creates an in-group and rallies against an out-group. And so I began to dislike her idea of anti-climate strikes. I realized that I am part of the out-group she rallies against. Not because of my intentions – I am probably more of an environmentalist than her – but because of my age. Greta Thunberg wages a war of generations. She unites the frustration of the young against the fears of the old.
And then I recalled that we had all this in a different color not too long ago. Young folks taking to the streets, waving little red bibles into the faces of the senior establishment for the sake of turning society upside down. Later, they would beat their elders up and disgrace them in public. They would trample on and destroy what had been built by their forefathers. We don’t need this, how tempting it might be. We need a solution which includes us all.
Further reading:
- The Guardian on Greta Thunberg’s activism
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Guards
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