Is staying calm in challenging times complicity?
n the past few months, I have written about how I am organizing my thinking in the context of changes being brought about by the new federal administration. While I have been clear about the importance of calling out cruelty, and have noted where I see federal actions risking or harming health, I have tried very hard to be open to new perspectives and ideas, recognizing that a new administration has a remit to do things differently, and that we should both give space for that and have capacious tolerance and generosity of spirit with respect to the motives of those involved in this effort. That has seemed the right approach to me and still does. I have, however, in the past weeks received notes from several colleagues that more or less ask, “How can you suggest that we should be open-minded, accepting, when we see terrible things happening?” and, “Are you not being complicit in allowing bad things to happen?” Inspired or informed by these challenges, I thought I would here address these questions — in particular, why I have tried to lean into equanimity in thinking and writing — and also address the perhaps uncomfortable additional questions: Is a measured, calm approach in the moment helpful, or does it verge on complacency? When is equanimity a moral virtue, and when does it slip into complicity with actions that harm?
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