The worst thing about censorship is
This short, one-line poem could be mistaken for half a poem. This poem may leave the reader wondering what I, the author, consider to be the worst thing about censorship. This poem may even beg the reader to fill in the blank, the censored blank, for themselves. Part of the point of the poem is that we will never truly know what we are missing when our ability to express ourselves in censored.
There are at least two types of censorship: self-censorship, and being censored by another. Most often censorship refers to the latter, typically in objection to censorship as an unjust social relationship. This type of censorship is important to identify and address because it is a direct threat to free speech. This type of censorship creates a climate of fear among those whose expressions may be threatened, and a mistrust of authority among those who question the legitimacy of such censorship. Censorship stands in almost direct opposition to free speech. No doubt, some expressions should not be considered free speech, such as the proverbial shouting “fire” in a crowded theater. Nonetheless, I suspect that such cases are quite rare. The fear and social control generated by direct censorship ripples far beyond a person’s expression being squelched, and beyond potential recipients of that expression losing out on that expression. The fear of some social sanction leads to countless forms and incidents of self-censorship. This is the insidiously successful child of direct censorship.
If those in a position of power to censor can cow us to become sheep, then their mold of our culture will grow more pronounced in our silence. I suspect self-censorship accounts for much, if not most, of the seemingly miraculous hold that the powers that be have over the masses. Self-censorship allows the illusion that power comes from above, top-down, rather than power being derived from the consent of the people. Of course, power from above, in the form of sheer force, is a scary reality. Social sanctions for simply speaking out can be large. In fact, the presence of a disproportionately large social sanction merely for speaking out is perhaps the surest clue that the underlying reality is unjust. After all, talk is cheap. But if questioning power structures is not dealt with early enough on, then the precarious illusion of top-down power masquerading as authority, and the seeming futility of bottom-up power, will continue unabated. A little shock and awe is sometimes needed to remind people of who is in control. Learned helplessness will do the trick the vast majority of the time.
Overcoming self-censorship is a necessary condition for a free society. We can only deal well with reality if we know what that reality is. This requires liberal self-expression. Heavily redacted realities make poor citizens and sick societies. This may be the best single reason for either avoiding most of popular media, or consuming it with a high degree of literacy, to see it for the spectacle that it is. The images and messages, both overt and subtle, in media have a powerful effect on how we view reality. The simple fact that there is a whole genre of “reality” television that has little to do with reality is probably the best illustration of how far afield we have become. TV is a poor representation of reality.
Overcoming self-censorship requires courage and sacrifice. As Amelia Earhart said, “Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace.” We can flow with the idolatrous, heavily redacted realities that invade our consciousness unrelentingly through media and advertising. Though such illusions are unsustainable in many ways, there is a lot of force applied to maintain them. Adding your consent to those forces may benefit you in many ways. Or, we can freely and courageously express our own realities which often differ profoundly from the heavily promoted narratives around us. This may exact a price, but, at least it is a price paid in homage to reality, not illusion. Who knows, we may very well find that the realities of the vast majority of humans on this planet have more in common with one another than the dreams foisted upon us. This is the making of peace. As Gandhi so simply and profoundly stated, “Peace is possible.” This reality is so routinely obscured. You can be a living expression of this reality. You are the channel.
