this post was submitted on 13 Apr 2025
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I've used the "miniscule percentage of the population" line before when shouting about the fact that so many people are making trans people's business their own business. But this is actually a great point that it's not exactly the best angle to take. It's hard to decide what angle to take when arguing with bigots though because appealing to their non-existent empathy or telling them to mind their own damn business doesn't seem to work either.
Yeah, it's like:
While there are outlying cases such as the formerly transphobic man in Wisconsin who listened and learned at the city council meeting, or my elderly neighbor who just hadn't met queer people before my husband and I moved in next door, for the vast majority of bigots it's not worth arguing at all. It's more like we have to make society hostile to bigotry. People who are aggressively bigoted mostly aren't open to being educated and will instead immediately become defensive and try to rationalize their own behavior and beliefs.
I think it really depends on a lot of factors though. Someone who's poor and living in my neighborhood is probably much more open to change than someone who's comfortable in an affluent neighborhood with a two-stall garage. The more privileged, the less likely they're going to even consider anything you have to say, because they already benefit from an inherently bigoted system.
On your last point, just a reminder that this 'culture war' bullshit is really just a distraction from the real war, the class war. And maybe that's actually the way to counter the bigots, seeing as there's no point in arguing with them on their level. Keep the focus on the fact that the rich and powerful, in particular tech bros / social media owners, profit off of and manipulate us on a large scale. And benefit from us fighting each other and stopping to think for a moment.
Edit: love your username
Valid point, and it's important for us all to keep in mind. I may not have a fancy house, but I still have access to things like cheap bananas that rely on exploitation of workers in the global south. It's important to understand how we are all subjects of an oppressive system with hierarchies of privilege.
And thanks! I feel like a poser though because I haven't played a Zelda game since Wind Waker.
That's exactly where I took my argument with 2 coworkers last week. I tried multiple methods to appeal to empathy or logic, but both failed. So I just declared that we aren't changing any policies with our discussions so maybe we just focus on issues that have a more direct impact on our lives, like worker's rights, healthcare, environmental issues, etc.