A year(ning) for justice

Last week, IamGenM columnist Michael Baylosis gave us a rundown of why 2018 has been the “most toxic year ever,” hinging on Oxford Dictionaries’ proclamation of “toxic” as its 2018 Word of the Year. Baylosis’ piece left us with this wonderfully tangy food for thought: “[S]ome things cannot be taken too lightly—and some others… we might be taking too seriously. Some things are toxic by nature, while some become toxic because of the amount of dosage.”

“Toxic” has indeed been a dominant flavor in 2018. Interestingly, though, another lexicon giant, Merriam-Webster, has a different take on the year that was. Its word of the year? “Justice.”

According to the distinguished dictionary, “justice” was the top lookup on Merriam-Webster.com this year. If it were any other year, it would seem odd that a word so basic and commonplace has had people consulting the dictionary. But not in 2018. This was a year of yearning for justice, whether in its technical or philosophical sense.

In 2018, it was especially difficult to ignore the numerous transgressions in the news, from murders on our streets to systemic deceit in our government. We saw political maneuvers, convictions and ousters. There was no shortage of incompetence and mishaps, both local and national. We felt more sharply the many inequities that have festered quietly in Filipino society, from campus bullying to misogyny to agricultural deficits.

So we called for justice, just as we have in the years past. We wanted legal justice, economic fairness, gender equity and environmental integrity.

In the process, many of us have come to be labeled as “social justice warriors”—and not in a complimentary way. The phrase may sound like it refers to people who promote social ideals, but in 2018, it has become a “mocking term for one who is seen as overly progressive,” as Merriam-Webster puts it.

The concept of social justice has been hijacked by ersatz “causes” in recent years. This is why we have the current perception of social justice warriors as overemotional bloggers who simply parrot buzzwords like “equality” and “freedom.”

Take feminism, for example. There are true women’s rights advocates around the world working to end very real problems like female genital mutilation, child marriages, abuse of women and sex trafficking. But we don’t hear about them. Instead, we are flooded with regurgitations about how women are better than men and how there should be a female remake of this movie or that.

The struggle for justice has been warped and reduced to empty noise in the perception of many. This is a shame because, amid the superficial echoes that barrage our news feeds, there are actually those of us who have effected tangible changes.

In 2018, our yearning for justice wasn’t just an emotional plea. We urged, we influenced, we acted. Further, we clamored not only for our own individual whims, but for more profound and wide-reaching causes. We moved for the greater good.

Some examples that come to mind are the multiple boycotts (or the threats of them) that consumers have used to hold major brands accountable. Consumers vowed to abandon Max Factor and Chelsea Beautique until these brands finally cut ties with the Kuwaiti celebrity who spoke against OFW rights. Consumers also shunned NutriAsia when it was embroiled in labor issues, and particularly when news broke of its violent dispersal of protesting workers.

On an even bigger scale, we put much more emphasis on mental health, environmental conservation and science-based economic remedies in 2018. This year, our country’s Mental Health Law was finally signed, as we continued to share survival stories and hotline numbers. We got more cities to ban single-use plastics and successfully pushed for the cleanup of Boracay. In 2018, we also supported the introduction of cleaner, more efficient jeepneys as well as the establishment of solar power enterprises across the provinces.

Though these were only occasional flashes of justice in what has been a long and arduous year, they demonstrated the force of an engaged public, made more potent through the ubiquitous social media networks and petition platforms of 2018.

These ought to be the landmarks to lead us into the upcoming year. Social justice hecklers can sod off; we’ve seen how our collective action can work, and we’re looking to do more in 2019. Here’s to a less toxic, more just new year.

hyacinthjt@gmail.com