SHE is proud to be a socialist. In these times when life is seen on a 5-inch glass screen, as well as a petri dish and under a microscope, Joanne Rose S. Lim turns to the centuries-old political theories of Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin.
The BusinessMirror got a chance to talk to Lim, who is taking up Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology at the University of the Philippines (UP). The 19-year-old is a founding member of the UP-based organization Samahan ng Progresibong Kabataan and a College of Science representative in the UP Student Council 2015-2016.
The BusinessMirror and Lim exchanged questions and answers via electronic mail after an initial chat during a news briefing on the 2016 presidential elections.
How do you define a millennial activist?
The main stereotype associated with a millennial is being individualistic, specifically being career-oriented and focused on developing the self. However, I believe the only distinguishing factor of a millennial activist from an activist is the luxury of being young.
Activists are determined that there is something wrong with society. Activists take part in solving this problem, despite the sacrifice it would entail for their personal lives. Activists make sure that in this process, they are rooted to and [are] with the masses, recognizing that these efforts are done collectively and that there should be a bias toward the oppressed and the marginalized.
What are the challenges of a millennial activist?
A surface-level problem might be the perception that we just haven’t really experienced the harsh realities of life, thus, our idealism in changing the system. Sometimes this extends to people invalidating the cause we are fighting for.
The bigger problem, though, is the environment of today’s society, which disincentivises people to be activists and continue with it. With high poverty rates and wide-scale unemployment, it’s hard for people to think of others when they themselves are fighting for their own survival.
Higher education, which allows us to be exposed to a lot of information and perspectives to get a grasp of the world’s situation, also remains to be inaccessible.
Prof. Renato Constantino said one of the important components of activism is intellectualism to remain sharp and grounded. With the low standards of education in the country, how would an activist in the current generation promote intellectualism?
Although education has a role to play in developing intellectuals, it is still two-faced in that we are not sure if it is liberating or limiting in nature. Other outlets of information—online or in print—can be used to make sure that when we are presenting an issue, it is founded on actual contexts. It is through having discourse on ideology and politics with other people, which pushes for critical thinking.
Intellectualism can be promoted through making sure that when arguing for positions and stands, it is through a more dynamic, scientific and coherent method, rather than repetitive and traditional rhetoric. This allows us to draw a sharp political line. It should be noted, though, that it is going beyond intellectualism that makes an activist an activist.
It is through using these intellectual capacities to translate into action and allowing oneself to be part of the masses and disciplined for them to reach an end goal.
Please compare the millennial activist to the older generation, particularly the First Quarter Storm (FQS) veterans.
I have an image of the FQS veterans being especially idealistic and determined in changing the system. They were able to rally and unite the youth and there was a premium in militant action.
The activists of today are more flexible in their forms of activism. This allows more avenues to forward the revolution and more opportunities to amass support for the movement.
Although there is now a lack in militant action, I maintain that militant action is still a crucial and relevant component in activism.
For today’s activist, what are the basic ills plaguing Philippine society?
The basic ills plaguing Philippine society are labor flexibilization, commercialization, privatization and deregulation, as is in line with the framework of capitalism. Basic social services are hijacked by the private sector and through this abandonment of the state, the basic necessities needed by citizens prove to be inaccessible as prices are deregulated.
There is a lack of accountability from the government in its failure to respect and safeguard the rights and necessities of its people, since it remains to protect the interests of the landowning elites and capitalists, their foreign counterparts as well as international financial institutions such as the World Bank and World Trade Organization.
This is expected in a society wherein profit is put first and people’s rights and dignities second, if ever considered.
Is the current UP environment a breeding ground for developing millennial activists?
UP has an inherent character of promoting an environment for discourse. There are also many organizations which have different advocacies and campaigns.
However, student participation in organizations has declined for the past years. Most people now associate activism to dogmatism and pragmatism, due to certain organizations’ practices, downplaying how activism’s core is about forwarding progressive positions and attacking issues in a scientific manner.
UP is losing its public character and turning elitist in nature. With this, students are less encouraged to take part in solving the problems of society, as they are less exposed to progressive ideas and concepts.
Who are your role models or biggest influences in activism? Why? Do you follow any political line?
[The late Filemon] Popoy Lagman’s writings were what really got me into activism. It was through this that I was able to appreciate the correctness of Marxist-Leninist theory and how it should be applied.
[The late] Lean Alejandro also influenced me as I saw in him that even as students we can already be activists. I saw that he was not the stereotypical activist, often being described as awkward at times, showing me that the character of an activist is not boxed.
This was also one of the main deterrents of mine from activism since I felt that I did not fit the mold. [Alejandro] was also a student-leader, who was able to unify even those with views opposed to his.
I follow a socialist line.
What important lessons have you learned in the study of the history of activism in the country?
The history of activism, specifically of student activism, has shown that it has been at a decline ever since its peak during the FQS in the 1970s. This may be attributed to the intellectual shaming throughout the years of the movement.
Correctness of radical theories was then shown to be constant and unchanging. This led to stagnation in the development of intellectual thought, especially as there was a veering away from the academe. But, it is this very academe, which is a critical avenue for confrontation with reactionary ideas and, thus, further improvement of ideological theories.
From this, I learned that arenas of resistance for the revolution, the academe among others, should be taken advantage of and can be turned towards the revolution’s political advantage. The intellectual aspect of being an activist should also not be left undeveloped.
Time and time again, history has shown us that the role of the youth cannot be downplayed, as their uncompromising commitment toward genuine social progress has been connected to the upheavals in society. It is, thus, important that the youth, in this time when systemic injustices are continuously perpetrated, be united in struggling for justice and upholding the rights of its own sector and the oppressed.
What are the tools being used by the millennial activist in analysing Philippine realities? Do you think Marxism is still a useful tool for analysis in analyzing society’s problems?
Social media and interactive technologies prove to be helpful outlets of news, analyses and perspectives from all over the world. Philippine realities, though, having its own additional qualifiers, are but a reflection of what is already happening around the globe.
Marxism is still a useful tool in analyzing Philippine society’s problems since it is the best critique and analysis on capitalist society. The Philippines is already working on a capitalist mode of production and, through the use of Marxism, we see how we as a country are interconnected to other countries.
This allows our approach to analyzing society be at a higher and most profound level, wherein we are able to connect issues and struggles and allows us to realize that these struggles are not isolated but are actually systemic.
What are your plans after graduation?
I’m currently taking up Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology and I plan on taking the graduate course and continue my studies in the National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology.
I also plan on still being an activist and continuously develop myself to become a better and more determined one and, hopefully, I’m strong enough to hold on to that in the long run.