those who have given up

Let me begin this short writing with an acknowledgment of those who have no choice but to be slaves to a system that has reaped them no reward or leisure. To those that find 3 jobs barely enough to support a starving family. To those that work for the hope that comfort might be awarded for once in their life.

This criticism is not aimed towards you who are oppressed in these chains by creation of capitalistic, imperialist colonizers. You are beautiful, may your liberation one day come.

In every sense of the phrase, all power to you.

Throughout the years of my short life I’ve encountered many personalities and attitudes, many share unique perspectives and thoughts on what it means to be alive.

All around me, so many seem to have given up. 

In Appalachia I see towns which have given up on eachother, communities lost.

In schooling I see teachers who have given up on educating, passion lost.

In design I see workers who have given up on being artists, creativity lost.

In society I see citizens who have given up on making change, freedom lost.

But the most frustrating part of this is when those who have given up focus their attacks onto those who haven’t, treating them with contempt for wanting change. 

We who see things that are not yet real and ask ourselves how to make it reality.

We who dream for better life and greener pastures should not have to sit idly by as we listen to the complacent tongues of those who have given up.

It seems that, to those who have given up, to love something is seemingly to have no issues with it whatsoever, as if love something lives only inside a margin of black and white. 

I am asked the question “If you don’t like creating, or making design, then why are you pursuing a masters in design?”

To lay out my feelings on the design field as a posed answer to this question in any short time is impossible. It is a more complicated relationship with that.

Is it wrong to critique something you love, something you feel empathetic and passionate towards? That which you have dedicated so much time and effort into understanding?

And when I look around, I see many things to be critical of. I see a eurocentric educational system which touts the qualities of the modern designer as a reproducible tool which should follow the cookie cutter form of modern design. 

I also see the beautiful, talented work of peers making beautiful design solutions. I’ve said before, in my glorious hypocritical tendencies, that the very corporate design field I attempt to undermine does not stop me from looking at a brand on a shelf and going “Ooooh! yeah, that’s very well made!”

How common is it to see those who claim empathetic quality conveniently choose how their empathy can operate. Or, those which understand the importance of empathy actively claiming they lack enough to care about this problem you pose.

I was raised in that system which told me to be that student who worries about nothing but hire-ability and logocultism. I once saw myself, young and bright eyed at the prospects of working my time away at a studio 9-5 each day.

I snapped out of that trance when I realized how unhealthy the design field has become to the people who sycophantically worship this career path. 

I chose not to give up on a healthier life as a designer. 

This is my mantra, my essence. If you attempt to beat me down, I will fight. I will burn brightly in my defiance until my last breath. I am an eternal flame, an infernal engine. I’d rather suffer an eternity in the hell of knowing this world than live in blissful ignorance of its truths.

I recognize fully that I am not like others in this sense. To clarify, I am not so naive as to believe that I will most definitely make change in the world. This does not stop me from spreading my ideas and thoughts in hopes of improving this field which I’ve dedicated much of my time, energy, and money towards.

I do not look down upon those who have given up, however. 

Feeling dejected in a system which is built to remove your autonomy and choice, this is simply by design. This is the modern society working exactly as planned. In other words, I know exactly what has caused this “epidemic of giving up” and am empathetic towards that.

However when you are actively trying to shut down the words of those bringing issues or criticism to power, perhaps it is time for you to sit by and listen while those who have not yet given up speak for the hopes of a better future.

Perhaps in time the fire in your eyes will ignite again, and you will find yourself fighting for a better future in which so many of us attempt to envision.