The "five orders of consciousness analysis is further weakened by its apparent ageism. It's bad enough to suggest that supporting the values of Earth Community is a function of "maturity , which implies that education and age are prerequisites for human decency. But the book goes one step further and actually assigns age numbers to each of the five levels of the consciousness ladder. Level 4, "Cultural Consciousness , which is associated with having "the capacity to question the dysfunctional cultural premises of Empire, is specifically declared the domain of adults. "A Cultural Consciousness is rarely achieved before age thirty, states page 46, in direct contradiction to Abbie Hoffman's warning not to trust anyone older than the big three-oh. Speaking as someone under thirty, I have to question the notion that older folks are more inclined to support justice than my generation. Ageist statements like this have the effect of invisiblizing youth and student activism, which has always been at the forefront of progressive change. At this very moment, hundreds of students in California are organizing rallies and occupations of their school buildings in order to save public education from unprecedented tuition increases.7 I'd like to see the over-thirty crowd take such inspiring action for change!
A final limitation of the book is the lack of strategy it puts forward for achieving the "Great Turning itself. As described by Korten, this enormous transformation will occur mostly by people elevating their consciousnesses and living differently " "a turning from relations of domination to relations of partnership based on organizing principles discerned from the study of healthy living systems (295). But what steps must be taken to transform these relations are not adequately explained. Instead there are vague passages such as, "As communities of congruence grow and connect, they advance the process of liberation from the cultural trance of Empire and offer visible manifestations of the possibilities of Earth Community. Individually and collectively they become attractors of the life energy that Empire has co-opted " thus weakening Empire and strengthening Earth Community in an emergent process of displacement and eventual succession (317). It sounds good, but how is that supposed to actually happen?
If history is any guide, Empire doesn't just fade away when something better comes along. Overcoming the system will require confronting the real forces of power that dominate our lives, and taking power back for our communities. The Civil Rights Movement remains the most inspiring and instructive example of democratic change in America. Black folks in the South had been struggling for freedom since before slavery ended and continued to resist Jim Crow laws through the 1960s, when legal segregation was finally defeated (though de facto segregation and racism continue today). It wasn't enough to set up separate Black-owned schools or restaurants as refuge from the white supremacist realities of America, although this helped and is a positive step. Taking down legal segregation required direct confrontations with power " sit-ins at "Whites Only restaurants, legal action which brought about Brown v. Board of Education, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, voter registration drives, and many, many other manifestations of mass-based popular struggle. To take down global capitalism and U.S. imperialism, the actual institutions behind what Korten calls Empire, any viable strategy will require a worldwide and multi-faceted, long-term movement for democratic change. This movement already exists, thankfully, so let's celebrate it and talk about how to strengthen it to achieve our common goals!
Conclusion " Giving Thanks for Life and Struggle
The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community is a much-needed book, which accomplishes a surprising amount despite its limitations. We can all be thankful that David Korten has compiled such wisdom from many different sources of inspiration in order to present a holistic vision of the world we need to lose and the world we want to gain. By translating anti-capitalist and anarchist concepts into everyday language, Korten widens the appeal of the fundamental transformation of society that is needed.
Moreover, he points towards a common-sense, radical politics by highlighting the strong majority of Americans supporting progressive change. For example, he quotes from various polls to show that, "Nearly nine out of ten U.S. adults (87 percent) believe we need to treat the planet as a living system and that we should have more respect and reverence for nature" Seventy-six percent of Americans reject the idea that the United States should play the role of world police officer, and 80 percent feel it is playing that role more than it should be" Eighty-eight percent distrust corporate executives, and 90 percent want new corporate regulations and tougher enforcement of existing laws. And, "More than two in three would like to see a return to a simpler way of life with less emphasis on consumption and wealth (68 percent) (332-33). This is the common ground held by Americans that should be seen as the base for moving in the direction of Earth Community. If the United States can transform itself, than surely other nations will follow.
This Thanksgiving, let us be thankful for our friends, families and communities, as well as our spiritualities for enriching our lives. And let us be grateful for the planet which sustains all that we do and all that we work towards. But let us also give thanks for those who speak and act boldly for justice and sustainability. From the generations that came before us and won so many victories, like ending segregation so that we might strive for unity, to the new generation currently struggling to save education in California and clean energy in Appalachia, millions have been struggling so that we might continue working towards a future worth living in. By giving thanks, we honor that challenge.
1 " I've tried to summarize the main features of capitalism in my
essay "What is Capitalism? Online at
http://endofcapitalism.com/about/2-what-is-capitalism/
2 " The "ruling class is exposed in simple but compelling terms by Paul Kivel in his 2004 book You Call This a Democracy? Who Benefits, Who Pays and Who Really Decides
3 " Right-wing British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher coined the TINA
phrase. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_is_no_alternative
4 " For a good introduction to the concept of "peak oil see Energy
Bulletin's "Peak Oil Primer. Online at http://energybulletin.net/primer
5 " Anarchist anthropologist David Graeber has written about the
surprising success of grassroots movements for change in his essay "The
Shock of Victory. Online at
click here
6 " See Coal River Wind for background on this choice, Online at
http://www.coalriverwind.org/ and Mountain Justice for ongoing news
from the struggle to stop Mountain-Top Removal, online at
http://www.mountainjusticesummer.org/
7 " After the UC Board of Regents passed a 32% tuition increase and
similar measures were taken across the state, students have fought back
by building an enormous movement to save affordable education. A recent
compilation of links and information regarding the California student
struggle can be found here (although it's all over the internets):
click here
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