Don Gusano has already noted the ecological benefits of zombification, not to mention the one-upmanship of certain sectors of the U.S. environmentalist movement. I want to take his analysis one step further: who/what are Eco-Zombies?
Zombies -- for those of you who don't know -- emerged as a concept in the Caribbean (or possibly in Africa) through the interactions between African religious beliefs brought to the New World, and the grinding misery caused by world demand for cash crops such as sugar. In this context, zombies were people who thought themselves to be dead and could be thus tricked into working in agroindustrial processes such as cutting sugar cane. They didn't need to be shot in the head: they could be awoken.
This connection between zombies and the worst aspects of capitalism has carried over into North Atlantic movie fascination with the creature. From Dawn of the Dead's mall consumerism to Sean of the Dead's routinized purchasing, the living and their zombie counterparts are linked through the processes of production and consumption. Most of these movies explore not the difference between the living and the dead, but the question of how much the living are already like the dead.
Enter the Eco-Zombie.
Many self-described environmentalists in the U.S. (at least) don't seem to realize that by being green(er) they have not escaped from capitalist materialism. Instead, they have simply become another niche market. Excessive consumption is inherently an environmental problem, but the eco-zombie thinks that if something is marked "Green" (or "Natural" or whatever) then buying it will be better than not buying it. In other words, they believe that consumption itself can solve environmental problems.
Many businesses are all too happy to agree as they sell recycled-this and fair-trade-that for prices that most can't afford. Environmentalism becomes another statement of wealth, something that only the upper classes can afford to flaunt. Better to buy green than not -- but do we really need so much stuff?! It seems to me that excessive buying is itself part of the problem.
There are real environmentalists out there, don't get me wrong. Even with my composting, low-flow shower heads, and semi-successful attempts at native gardening, I don't hold a candle to them. They've taught me about local invasive species and introduced me to my wonderful worm companions. No doubt they buy recycled products and shop at local farmers' markets, but they are not trying to make "statements" with consumer goods.
For Eco-zombies, on the other hand, it is not really about the environment. It is a kind of individualistic greenwashing, an attempt to buy one's way into a movement that actually requires an investment of time rather than money. Eco-zombies don't realize that the problem is not just what you buy, but how much. And they are the true market for businesses that sell green -- or "greeeeeen" -- products.
Now, if you'll excuse me... I have some shopping to do...
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Rise of the Eco-Zombies: Definitions
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4 comments:
I'm afraid I fall into the eco-zombie category. I like to buy green (and "greeeeen", oh yes!) products and get the warm fuzzy feeling of not really doing anything, but doing something.
I've yet to become a full-fledged environmentalist, and I'm willing to admit that that particular transformation may never occur. It's a subculture that I envy and respect, much like the Mormon polygamists* in Texas, but I'm aware that I'm not likely to go freegan anytime soon. I'll buy in, thankyouverymuch; let someone else dumpster dive and save that perfectly good jar of past-the-expiration-date pickles.
Are political blog junkies a parallel form of zombie that claims its awakening through participation in the pixelated public sphere, but fails on most measures of true political action?
Could the same sorts, if they focused on the intricacies of law without ever lifting a finger to change the same, be called "lawmbies"?
I like this typology...and since it's on the internet, writing about it saves trees!!! (shuffles off to buy a hybrid)
*Okay, so I don't respect the Mormon polygynists. Don't envy them much, either, but that's because I spent too much time amongst their reformed cousins in Idaho.
PMS, don't you think you are being a little hard on yourself? We can't all be freegans, but at least you are (were?) a vegetarian, which is more than I am willing to do (although I eat "little" meat compared to the "average" American, whoever that bastard is). What we eat has as much or more impact on the environment as what car we do/don't drive, etc.
We all get a nice warm fuzzy feeling when we buy some greenie product. Me too! But when my neighbors tell me that they are "environmentalists" because they take their recycling to a far-away center in their brand-new SUV (rather than use the blue-bag program by their own home), I have to wonder. It's better than nothing, but the calculus is way off, IMHO.
I do like the idea of expanding zombism to other feel-good activities, though. A round of cynicism on the house!
I think I'm vegetarian at about the same level that Bush is a compassionate conservative.
Okay, maybe a bit more vegetarian than that...(we fall off the wagon now and then)
At least you *can* fall off the wagon! Bush never got on his in the first place. :-)
We're not vegetarians, but we don't eat a lot of meat -- maybe a couple times a week. I prefer it that way; a high-meat diet is too much for me. If all Americans did that, it would have a huge positive impact (and wouldn't require them to make the all-or-nothing commitment of vegetarianism). Maybe it would also allow us to reform our crazy industrial-animal-farming-complex, which is a scary thing in its own right.
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