Apolitical: Virtue or Vice
By N. Gonsalves | “Dans ses écrits, un sage Italien, Dit que le mieux est l'ennemi du bien”: (La Bégueule, 1772 by Voltaire)
Written by Neil Gonsalves for Seeking Veritas on Substack
Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.…’
Winston S Churchill, 11 November 1947
It is common for someone to claim that they are “apolitical” to signal their objectivity. - Corporations make that claim even more loudly and proudly. Very few people question the implied logic behind the assertion that being apolitical is synonymous with being neutral or objective, arguably a virtue. Fewer still question whether the claim is merely convenient, undoubtedly a vice!
Within a democratic society, civic engagement, and political participation form the foundation of our social contract. It is the mechanism by which we elect the government that represents us, protects our rights, and preserves our freedoms. - It is the defining feature that differentiates a democracy from an autocracy - be it an oligarchy, dictatorship, or even a monarchy.
Democracy is necessarily messy; we put our favoured ideologies - social and economic - into the proverbial town square and then agree by consensus, administered by vote, the policies and parties that govern us by consent for a fixed period of time. If our decision proves to be unsatisfactory, we return at the next opportunity and utilize our vote to make our voice heard. When the last ballot has been cast, the people have spoken; the campaigning is over and we are are meant to function as a unified society.
Once government is formed the function of the opposition parties are equally critical to our democracy. They are the guardrails against excess. The push and pull of perspective are meant to bring us to middle ground that serves the best interests of all citizens. The political jostling is intended to produce balanced outcomes, necessary compromise and social progress.
When you can no longer tell the difference between your attitude towards a sports rivalry and the “other” political party - Something has gone terribly wrong!
It has been said that democracy is the worst type of government except for all the other alternatives - I submit our democracy is not without its flaws and blind spots, but having lived in a country with an absolute authoritarian monarch previously, I assure you the flaws are worth the bargain.
Let’s return to the debate about whether we should consider the “apolitical” claim a virtue or a vice. - Here are some points for consideration before you decide;
Humans are tribal by nature so neutrality is probably a myth…. Everyone knows that humans are tribal and most assume we merely hide our preferences (some call these biases). So who are we fooling?
Civic engagement is critical to the democratic process… so naturally we hide any indication that we participate in the democratic process.
We bemoan low voter turnout and constantly criticize the young for their unwillingness to engage in local politics… so naturally we model that political affiliation is a trait that corrupts our ability to deal with others.
We teach children about government in elementary school; by high school we educate them about the various political parties and discuss how they present different ideas about the best approach to governance; in post-secondary we encourage them to run for student government and become informed about community activism… so naturally we follow all that with hiding political affiliation and use being apolitical as a measure of being objective. (Why didn’t we trust the purpose of being informed?)
When we leave our country and travel abroad, we are all Canadians (or insert your country here) - … so naturally at home we are red, blue, orange, or green - mortal enemies locked in eternal combat for the soul of the nation.
If one is genuinely apolitical, could that not also be symptomatic of an uninformed electorate or worse, an apathetic one?!
Differences in political perspective is what makes a democracy, a democracy! - Regardless of our political preferences, we need to collectively recommit ourselves to finding our common humanity and remembering our common national purpose.
The “other” parties are not our enemies, they are merely fellow citizens with divergent views. We could take a note from Voltaire’s poem, La Bégueule and stop making perfection the enemy of the good.
Bio: Neil Gonsalves is an Indian-born Canadian immigrant who grew up in Dubai, U.A.E. and moved to Canada in 1995. He is an Ontario college professor, a TEDx speaker, a columnist, a recreational dog trainer and an advocate for new immigrant integration and viewpoint diversity.
