Reimagining Social Work in AotearoaA guest post by Luis Arevalo
In 2018 Steve Bannon, who was once Trump’s chief strategist, described the act of overwhelming the opposition political party, the media, and society in general with copious amounts of information and noise as ‘Flooding the Zone’. The simple act of overwhelming the online and print media sectors with an enormous amount of ‘stuff’ has left society so inundated that they have given up trying to digest and understand what is going on.
While politicians, pundits, and the media tell stories about politics, economics, and society as if they were distinct spheres of influence, the working people of Aotearoa are acutely aware they are not.
I have been wondering (as my time in a University teaching job meanders to an end) about the function of dissent – questioning and challenging the status quo, power, vested interests – in organisations and in wider politics. I once wrote ‘‘One day I’ll find a place where there are no games of power / One day I’ll get struck by a meteor shower”. What are the implications of the current – and inescapable – power shifts in our social and political world?
Thinking is always important – particularly at times when we are encouraged to believe it is unnecessary. AI can do that for us, right?
To all 15,000 of our readers in Aotearoa and overseas and all 1,000 of our loyal subscribers, we wish you and your whānau the happiest year ahead.
Since we know what makes you happy is to educate, agitate, and organise, we want to share some ideas about actions and invite your own thoughts in the reply section below.