Ed 61, Issue 6
Editorial/Opinion 07
EDITORIAL: Liking yourself is rebellious in a consumer culture
ILLUSTRATION BY MO HERBE
Consumerism sells self-loathing, saya McKenzie Eskridge.
McKenzie Eskridge REPORTER
C
onsumer culture: you’ll never be enough. The road to American consumerism has been a slow build, but the core reason you’ll never feel satisfied with your appearances or confident in your ambitions is quite simple: self-esteem is not good for economic growth. We buy when we feel insecure and worried about personal anxieties. It’s human nature to want to belong, but advertisers remind us on average 5,000 times a day that we are not authentic, complete, beautiful, interesting or lovable without whatever they’re selling. But how would we think and treat each other (and treat ourselves) if town hall meetings were blasted through the radio and “promoted” on social media every day? Or 5,000 pieces of thought-provoking art crossed our line of vision daily? It’s important to note that it’s not just these intrusive, unsolicited ads in newspapers, TVs, billboards, magazines, bus stops, schools, race cars, social media and other places businesses are using to reinforce our identity as consumers with the “freedom to buy.” It’s also in our films, our language and even how we celebrate holidays. We might be against food security programs and mandated living wages, but no one has the audacity to criticize charities that request toys for low-income kids’ Christmas trees. Despite having too much
stuff to go around, consumer culture has not proven kind to economic inequality. Or the environment. Or anything other than stockholder wealth. Not to let powerful leaders off the hook, but a recurring moment of clarity throughout this project and others taken on in sociological studies is that systems work the way they are designed. How did we wind up with this one? Spanish, French and Dutch colonizers sailed to America ready to exploit land and labor in search of riches, but Puritans and Quakers actually fled England in pursuit of the simple life. Conspicuous displays and pursuits of wealth were forbidden in Massachusetts Bay Colony and Pennsylvania. Considering the potential of mass production to create more leisure time, the Industrial Revolution was not meant to mess with these cultural norms. Because of the exploitative principles of capitalism, however, factory hours ran long, but laborers worked just enough to subsist. They knew that true wealth was time for self-chosen activities. And although wealthy Americans began to proudly display their fortunes near the dawn of the 20th century, “Affluenza: How Overconsumption is Killing Us--and How to Fight Back” authors noted, “organized labor had not yet then accepted the definition of the good life as the goods life…demand for
shorter hours topped labor’s agenda.” Industrial leaders had to create demand for mass production by gradually making consumption a way of life. The Great Depression and World War II slowed the path to American consumerism, but with expanded credit, generous government loans, urban sprawl, extended shopping hours, and an increasing amount of department stores, the beast was unleashed; all things disposable were embraced.
(Story continued on page 8)
THINGS TO DO OTHER THAN BUYING STUFF: NKU Yoga classes (great tool for practicing gratitude and learning to be present), joining NKU Hiking Club (nature has magic/scientific healing powers that calm us down), enroll in a media literacy course (and learn way more than I could relay in on article), host a potluck dinner (historically, meals are meant to be shared), take a walk around the rec center track (walks boost creativity, for real), looking up un-commercials on Adbusters, or visiting https://www.newamerica.org.