Nora Charles (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
noracharles) wrote2010-01-05 10:27 pm
noracharles) wrote2010-01-05 10:27 pm
Entry tags:
A clarification for the privileged
An emotion is not an opinion. We can not agree or disagree with an emotion, but we can sympathize (feel the same) or empathize (understand or care about the person's emotions).
An experience is not an opinion. We can not agree or disagree with it, but we can believe or disbelieve, or understand the experience being relayed.
An opinion is an opinion, and we can agree or disagree with it, or argue for or against it.
Someone who has a mental health issue and reacts in an unusual way emotionally may have emotions we can't sympathize with. But that doesn't mean we have to disbelieve their experiences, or disagree with their opinions.
Irrational is a not a synonym for wrong, or "thing I disbelieve" or "thing I disagree with."
Sane is not a synonym for right, or "thing I believe" or "thing I agree with."
And a pertinent example:
"Because of my social anxiety, I don't like having my fic archived on public archives, including the AO3" is not the same as "I have political or philosophical objections to the AO3".
When you use mental health to judge who are right and who are wrong in a disagreement, you are not just arguing for your opinion, you are also contributing to the oppression of all people with mental health issues (including those who agree with you about the matter at hand).
An experience is not an opinion. We can not agree or disagree with it, but we can believe or disbelieve, or understand the experience being relayed.
An opinion is an opinion, and we can agree or disagree with it, or argue for or against it.
Someone who has a mental health issue and reacts in an unusual way emotionally may have emotions we can't sympathize with. But that doesn't mean we have to disbelieve their experiences, or disagree with their opinions.
Irrational is a not a synonym for wrong, or "thing I disbelieve" or "thing I disagree with."
Sane is not a synonym for right, or "thing I believe" or "thing I agree with."
And a pertinent example:
"Because of my social anxiety, I don't like having my fic archived on public archives, including the AO3" is not the same as "I have political or philosophical objections to the AO3".
When you use mental health to judge who are right and who are wrong in a disagreement, you are not just arguing for your opinion, you are also contributing to the oppression of all people with mental health issues (including those who agree with you about the matter at hand).
no subject
There's "crazy," as in seriously bonkers totally nonfunctional broken-mindedness... and then there's "crazy," as in weird and different and makes everyone nearby wonder what drugs you're on (or off), but not danger-to-self-and-others, not incapable of making conscious choices, not unable to establish & maintain social relationships.
And we don't have a decent set of vocab for distinguishing between the two. They're both lumped under "mentally ill" with a pack of technical terms that even the experts don't consense on the meanings of. (And modern psychology treats all religion as kind of benign delusion, except when you have too much of it and it's considered a dangerous delusion.)
no subject
I really enjoyed this review/analysis of 'exporting American mental illness'. I think it added a lot to the article itself.