So much gratitude! This is such an important piece—thank you for naming these powerful modalities (Bateson, sociometry, Process Work) and for bringing them into the conversation about how we actually do movement-building in a way that strengthens us instead of tearing us apart. Seeing this kind of sketch of a framework laid out is inspiring because I know firsthand how much training it takes to hold space in the way you’re describing—to see our blind spots, to invite divergence without it devolving into destruction, to make space for conflict in a generative way.
Obviously one of our particular challenges on the Left is how much of our political culture has become fixated on individual identity—especially the identity of the underdog. There’s a way that this kind of identity politics can make it so challenging to build durable movements, because when we’re constantly navigating who has the most legitimate claim to suffering, it makes trust and collaboration almost impossible. And yet, I completely agree that without cultivating the wisdom of the divergent voice, we’ll just keep repeating the same patterns of collapse and fragmentation.
I’m really down for this conversation in a long term kind of way. In my day to day life I'm an IFS practitioner and I work with individuals (including myself!) who struggle with all kinds of internal polarizations and exile parts that end up running the show until we can unblend enough to take care of all the intersecting parts. It's a smaller fractal version of the work you're describing. I so appreciate your voice in these times. I'll be out here listening.
This is really good. I've been in groups where I felt like I often held divergent opinions but didn't want to disrupt things by voicing them, and it would have meant the world to me if the facilitator (or anyone, really) had asked those simple questions - Does anyone have a different idea? Does anyone disagree?
Oh, I feel so affirmed by this. I've long wished for more leftists to embrace IFS, group relations ideas, etc. - there's so much wisdom to be leveraged in these discourses. Thank you!
love the invitation to speak in the 'rough draft' as perfectionism and needing to be able to articulate a clear rational argument can be a barrier for the divergent voice, particularly in a culture that does not necessarily value intuitive ideas, downloads or offerings. also appreciate the invitation of acknowledging and allowing the divergent voice within to be heard.
Continually being the divergent voice can lead to burnout if there's no support (ask me how I know...) I've had trouble with groups that claim to be open-minded and inclusive but aren't actually. It takes vulnerability to be the divergent voice but that energy is a finite resource. It's even worse if you are relatively privileged compared to others in the group, or speaking on behalf of someone who is. I hope the ideas in this essay spread far and wide.
Damn.... really succinct and touching me deeply. Love these ideas and I want to shout out NVC for being a real leader of creating a framework to care for the divergent voice
Excellent essay! My only dissent (ha!) is that "2) Frame disagreement as an opportunity for collective growth" needs some training to be effectively done. There are some ways, I would point Nonviolent Communication as an accessible approach.
thank you for this! such good and practical advice that could transform how a group works. i just attended a local trans anarchist group and i’m itching to share this piece with them, it feels like the most important thing to put in place to create a strong community
Hello friends. This is an incredible piece; I love the weaving together of various strains the one(s) going against the grain as the divergent voice and how being neurodivergent can create a lifetime of feeling like the outsider since seemingly few see what you see and silence ya when trying to gently point it out. The silencing has gotten worse since transitioning, so I'm asking for guidance with awareness that everything is context dependent. Any general advice on how to keep swimming strongly in the divergent direction when the riptide gets rougher after voicing truth and the collective tries to keep hiding the truth within themselves?
This paragraph from "The Village and the Woods" comes to mind: "We prefer to punish Monsters on behalf of the Innocent rather than extending our hands to the Sullied. We reject the Sullied aspect of the Victim because to embrace it would force us to face our pain and feelings of helplessness as well as our complicity in the enactment of systemic violence."
Curiosity... I had an interesting convo last week with an African friend living in London that I’ve been chewing on. She said, “Divergence and disagreeing is very much a U.S. thing.” We hold different political views (she leans more right), and she added, “In my culture, divergence is not welcome.”
That got me curious, so I’ve been having loads of conversations. Growing up in a fundamentalist religion like you, paradoxical stuff is kinda my thing.
But I’m wondering—how do you engage in divergence with folks from a culture that sees it as disrespectful or a very Western concept? Maybe she was using “culture” to foreclose on dialogue, but it also left me examining how to do divergence in a way that respects folks from cultures that don't do dialogue like the US. The best I have come up with so far in my limited learning are the Deep Democracy Intensives I have attended in Kenya and The Netherlands. It has me checking my bias about Western Ideas of the Divergent Voice.
So much gratitude! This is such an important piece—thank you for naming these powerful modalities (Bateson, sociometry, Process Work) and for bringing them into the conversation about how we actually do movement-building in a way that strengthens us instead of tearing us apart. Seeing this kind of sketch of a framework laid out is inspiring because I know firsthand how much training it takes to hold space in the way you’re describing—to see our blind spots, to invite divergence without it devolving into destruction, to make space for conflict in a generative way.
Obviously one of our particular challenges on the Left is how much of our political culture has become fixated on individual identity—especially the identity of the underdog. There’s a way that this kind of identity politics can make it so challenging to build durable movements, because when we’re constantly navigating who has the most legitimate claim to suffering, it makes trust and collaboration almost impossible. And yet, I completely agree that without cultivating the wisdom of the divergent voice, we’ll just keep repeating the same patterns of collapse and fragmentation.
I’m really down for this conversation in a long term kind of way. In my day to day life I'm an IFS practitioner and I work with individuals (including myself!) who struggle with all kinds of internal polarizations and exile parts that end up running the show until we can unblend enough to take care of all the intersecting parts. It's a smaller fractal version of the work you're describing. I so appreciate your voice in these times. I'll be out here listening.
This is really good. I've been in groups where I felt like I often held divergent opinions but didn't want to disrupt things by voicing them, and it would have meant the world to me if the facilitator (or anyone, really) had asked those simple questions - Does anyone have a different idea? Does anyone disagree?
Oh, I feel so affirmed by this. I've long wished for more leftists to embrace IFS, group relations ideas, etc. - there's so much wisdom to be leveraged in these discourses. Thank you!
love the invitation to speak in the 'rough draft' as perfectionism and needing to be able to articulate a clear rational argument can be a barrier for the divergent voice, particularly in a culture that does not necessarily value intuitive ideas, downloads or offerings. also appreciate the invitation of acknowledging and allowing the divergent voice within to be heard.
Continually being the divergent voice can lead to burnout if there's no support (ask me how I know...) I've had trouble with groups that claim to be open-minded and inclusive but aren't actually. It takes vulnerability to be the divergent voice but that energy is a finite resource. It's even worse if you are relatively privileged compared to others in the group, or speaking on behalf of someone who is. I hope the ideas in this essay spread far and wide.
Damn.... really succinct and touching me deeply. Love these ideas and I want to shout out NVC for being a real leader of creating a framework to care for the divergent voice
Excellent essay! My only dissent (ha!) is that "2) Frame disagreement as an opportunity for collective growth" needs some training to be effectively done. There are some ways, I would point Nonviolent Communication as an accessible approach.
thank you for this! such good and practical advice that could transform how a group works. i just attended a local trans anarchist group and i’m itching to share this piece with them, it feels like the most important thing to put in place to create a strong community
Hello friends. This is an incredible piece; I love the weaving together of various strains the one(s) going against the grain as the divergent voice and how being neurodivergent can create a lifetime of feeling like the outsider since seemingly few see what you see and silence ya when trying to gently point it out. The silencing has gotten worse since transitioning, so I'm asking for guidance with awareness that everything is context dependent. Any general advice on how to keep swimming strongly in the divergent direction when the riptide gets rougher after voicing truth and the collective tries to keep hiding the truth within themselves?
This paragraph from "The Village and the Woods" comes to mind: "We prefer to punish Monsters on behalf of the Innocent rather than extending our hands to the Sullied. We reject the Sullied aspect of the Victim because to embrace it would force us to face our pain and feelings of helplessness as well as our complicity in the enactment of systemic violence."
Thanks for this.
Curiosity... I had an interesting convo last week with an African friend living in London that I’ve been chewing on. She said, “Divergence and disagreeing is very much a U.S. thing.” We hold different political views (she leans more right), and she added, “In my culture, divergence is not welcome.”
That got me curious, so I’ve been having loads of conversations. Growing up in a fundamentalist religion like you, paradoxical stuff is kinda my thing.
But I’m wondering—how do you engage in divergence with folks from a culture that sees it as disrespectful or a very Western concept? Maybe she was using “culture” to foreclose on dialogue, but it also left me examining how to do divergence in a way that respects folks from cultures that don't do dialogue like the US. The best I have come up with so far in my limited learning are the Deep Democracy Intensives I have attended in Kenya and The Netherlands. It has me checking my bias about Western Ideas of the Divergent Voice.