Wow the similarities between the Just Stop Oil protestors and the Suffragettes! I loved the bit about the British Museum requiring entry for women to be vouched for by a respectable man. Maybe the National Gallery will start asking for young adults to be accompanied! In all seriousness, I am glad you've written this because ALL I've seen in the coverage about this story is patronising to those activists and in general quite negative about what they've done. This is a much more balanced view. I think when you point to similar stories from the past that show what has happened before, why and what the results were it helps to put it all in perspective.
Loved this voice note- we’ve (M and Mr A, ) just listened on the journey to work. I really enjoy the balanced perspectives and historical insight you bring Vic. I’ll comment about the topic itself later. ♥️
As a scientist I am always a little suspicious if the abstract does not tell us how a conclusion was reached, how many people did they ask and how? The paper is a collection of 5 studies, and people (n= 63/90/140/238/194) were recruited online through Amazon Mechanical Turk, the online marketplace for work and through a university (so undergraduates). They were asked specific questions about typical types of people including feminists, some questions asked participants to think about ‘a typical American’ so the outcomes are not as generalisable outside of the USA, and how reliable is a measure of ‘typical American’ (South and North American identities are v different for example!) - the study does not tell us the geographical areas the participants came from to conclude about the generalisability.
The researchers did not ask about the perceivers’ own identity as an activist, this is a limitation because we know that the ‘space or gap’ in-between social groups is important to stigmatising and stereotyping outcomes.
That said, and the limitations established, social change needs some element of visibility top gain traction, for example, carrying a hessian reusable bag is a socially acceptable visible signal of our green identity, whereas supergluing ourselves to pavements is an expressive behaviour that is less socially acceptable (to most people). Activism makes us think about where we sit in relation to our own identity and the activist group identity, which creates an in group and outgroup effect that we see in many areas of our lives, the differences are then accentuated between groups. (Tajfel and Turner have a social identity theory about this group effect!)
Interestingly perceived gaps between two groups are not always equal, this recent study (Friends or foes? How activists and non-activists perceive and evaluate each other | PLOS ONE ,2020) explored activist and non-activist perception, and is contrary to the 2013 findings. Non activists had a positive view of activists, whereas the negative effect was the perception of activists towards non activists.
Furthermore, stereotyping effects are nuanced , in recent research ( https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672211060124, 2021), advantaged activists were sub categorised as altruistic and superficial in contrast to disadvantaged groups who were labels strong and aggressive. Disadvantaged groups include stigmatised and oppressed people, so LGBT, Black people- so we could argue that we hate environmentalists and feminists, but this effect is confounded by other biases too!
Overall, research shows that individuals do not avoid affiliating with and adopting the behaviours advocated by all activists. ‘Social identities are not fixed; they are dynamic and flexible, changing in people’s minds as a function of the comparative context’ (Fielding, Hornsey 2016), so on balance I'm not convinced, (no surprise I identify as a liberal, eh?) Where is the superglue?
Bloody hell Leila this is amazing! First up I’m regretting using the cheap take away from that study which was ‘we all hate feminists and environmentalists’. Although it feels like there’s a kernel of truth in that. Interesting that the more recent study finds the opposite is true - just goes to show how different these studies can be. But also interesting about perceptions around advantaged / disadvantaged activists.I would have thought class played some part in that. What if you’re a queer woman who has been to university? Where does that put you in the hierarchy? I only ask this because one of the activists who souped Van Gogh has been on the sharp end of criticism online in comments left after a video she recorded, about her privilege, her education, appearance etc: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NYUqSv1ug5o
Altruistic yet superficial, is how one of the studies viewed advantaged activists. I’d say class is very much an aspect of this, it leans into the eco warrior stereotype too.
Each piece of research is valid, within its own context, the takeaway is that there’s a bigger more nuanced picture, and underneath that we each have individual and shifting social identities that frame our view of the world.
Now, the bit that’s really interesting is how the message ‘we all hate feminists and environmentalists’ became so sticky... it’s believable, relatable and published by a credible source !
So it happened again! I get so far with a comment then my screen loses the last part of the text and I can't do anything but post or lose the lot! Anyone else have this problem? Meant to end with... I am appalled at news reports on the deforestation of green areas but do nothing about it so am a little in awe of activists like this. Would I have felt the same had they damaged the painting? Most definitely not. But is this reaction right? Victoria's last (and chilling) question has got me thinking...
Ooh I loved reading this! Completely missed the Just Stop Oil story on the news (no idea how) and drawn to anything Suffragette related. I have a lot of sympathy for the Just Stop Oil activists and as already mentioned, they didn't actually damage the painting, just temporarily defaced it. Moved by the sound of panic and despair in the activist's voice (and at how young she was looked), I am in awe of these Eco Warriors. I sit around worrying about climate change and appalled at tdestinatiotatserofedn
Thanks for your brilliant feedback Jen. I know what you mean about having empathy for them. I wouldn't be able to do what they have done. I read something on Substack yesterday that dismissed these young activists as just 'teenagers' doing their thing. Whaaat?
I do think these protestors really thought carefully about this action: here’s an interview with them In Frieze https://www.frieze.com/article/interview-just-stop-oil
Wow the similarities between the Just Stop Oil protestors and the Suffragettes! I loved the bit about the British Museum requiring entry for women to be vouched for by a respectable man. Maybe the National Gallery will start asking for young adults to be accompanied! In all seriousness, I am glad you've written this because ALL I've seen in the coverage about this story is patronising to those activists and in general quite negative about what they've done. This is a much more balanced view. I think when you point to similar stories from the past that show what has happened before, why and what the results were it helps to put it all in perspective.
Loved this voice note- we’ve (M and Mr A, ) just listened on the journey to work. I really enjoy the balanced perspectives and historical insight you bring Vic. I’ll comment about the topic itself later. ♥️
Thanks Leila. I particularly want to know what you think about that study from 2013 on why we all hate environmentalists and feminists!
Long answer.. we probably don't!
As a scientist I am always a little suspicious if the abstract does not tell us how a conclusion was reached, how many people did they ask and how? The paper is a collection of 5 studies, and people (n= 63/90/140/238/194) were recruited online through Amazon Mechanical Turk, the online marketplace for work and through a university (so undergraduates). They were asked specific questions about typical types of people including feminists, some questions asked participants to think about ‘a typical American’ so the outcomes are not as generalisable outside of the USA, and how reliable is a measure of ‘typical American’ (South and North American identities are v different for example!) - the study does not tell us the geographical areas the participants came from to conclude about the generalisability.
The researchers did not ask about the perceivers’ own identity as an activist, this is a limitation because we know that the ‘space or gap’ in-between social groups is important to stigmatising and stereotyping outcomes.
That said, and the limitations established, social change needs some element of visibility top gain traction, for example, carrying a hessian reusable bag is a socially acceptable visible signal of our green identity, whereas supergluing ourselves to pavements is an expressive behaviour that is less socially acceptable (to most people). Activism makes us think about where we sit in relation to our own identity and the activist group identity, which creates an in group and outgroup effect that we see in many areas of our lives, the differences are then accentuated between groups. (Tajfel and Turner have a social identity theory about this group effect!)
Interestingly perceived gaps between two groups are not always equal, this recent study (Friends or foes? How activists and non-activists perceive and evaluate each other | PLOS ONE ,2020) explored activist and non-activist perception, and is contrary to the 2013 findings. Non activists had a positive view of activists, whereas the negative effect was the perception of activists towards non activists.
Furthermore, stereotyping effects are nuanced , in recent research ( https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672211060124, 2021), advantaged activists were sub categorised as altruistic and superficial in contrast to disadvantaged groups who were labels strong and aggressive. Disadvantaged groups include stigmatised and oppressed people, so LGBT, Black people- so we could argue that we hate environmentalists and feminists, but this effect is confounded by other biases too!
Overall, research shows that individuals do not avoid affiliating with and adopting the behaviours advocated by all activists. ‘Social identities are not fixed; they are dynamic and flexible, changing in people’s minds as a function of the comparative context’ (Fielding, Hornsey 2016), so on balance I'm not convinced, (no surprise I identify as a liberal, eh?) Where is the superglue?
Bloody hell Leila this is amazing! First up I’m regretting using the cheap take away from that study which was ‘we all hate feminists and environmentalists’. Although it feels like there’s a kernel of truth in that. Interesting that the more recent study finds the opposite is true - just goes to show how different these studies can be. But also interesting about perceptions around advantaged / disadvantaged activists.I would have thought class played some part in that. What if you’re a queer woman who has been to university? Where does that put you in the hierarchy? I only ask this because one of the activists who souped Van Gogh has been on the sharp end of criticism online in comments left after a video she recorded, about her privilege, her education, appearance etc: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NYUqSv1ug5o
Altruistic yet superficial, is how one of the studies viewed advantaged activists. I’d say class is very much an aspect of this, it leans into the eco warrior stereotype too.
Each piece of research is valid, within its own context, the takeaway is that there’s a bigger more nuanced picture, and underneath that we each have individual and shifting social identities that frame our view of the world.
Now, the bit that’s really interesting is how the message ‘we all hate feminists and environmentalists’ became so sticky... it’s believable, relatable and published by a credible source !
So it happened again! I get so far with a comment then my screen loses the last part of the text and I can't do anything but post or lose the lot! Anyone else have this problem? Meant to end with... I am appalled at news reports on the deforestation of green areas but do nothing about it so am a little in awe of activists like this. Would I have felt the same had they damaged the painting? Most definitely not. But is this reaction right? Victoria's last (and chilling) question has got me thinking...
By the way, I'll ask Substack what's going on with the comments / screen thing in case there's a glitch somewhere they can fix.
Yes, exactly. Had they actually damaged the artwork it would be harder to empathise. But as you say, would that be the right reaction?
Ooh I loved reading this! Completely missed the Just Stop Oil story on the news (no idea how) and drawn to anything Suffragette related. I have a lot of sympathy for the Just Stop Oil activists and as already mentioned, they didn't actually damage the painting, just temporarily defaced it. Moved by the sound of panic and despair in the activist's voice (and at how young she was looked), I am in awe of these Eco Warriors. I sit around worrying about climate change and appalled at tdestinatiotatserofedn
Thanks for your brilliant feedback Jen. I know what you mean about having empathy for them. I wouldn't be able to do what they have done. I read something on Substack yesterday that dismissed these young activists as just 'teenagers' doing their thing. Whaaat?