It often becomes the case that I find myself up until 3:15 AM writing a paper for class, due to this bad habit that I have where my breaks from homework almost always become vacations. This is also not to mention that when I’m up this late, I usually have a class six hours later from when I finally turn in the night, so you could probably say that without caffeine, I am someone you really do not want to interact with. In this class it is also the case where I find myself going off on a tangent in my head, not because I don’t find the class interesting, but because I can just imagine myself being in bed at that moment, and that if I took a later class I wouldn’t have to deal with this.

Anyway, this article isn’t to ramble on about me dreading going to a morning class, but it was what I learned in this class this week that resonated within me. The class is called Climate Change and the Media, which examines how various media outlets control the narrative on climate change and what implications it can bring about. One of this week’s lectures pertained to the politicization of climate change in particular.

But it was one video in this lecture that emphasized something that seems to be lacking in the political arena nowadays, yet we don’t even really notice it: empathy.

As someone who plans to dive into the world of the unknown also known as politics, this video really had me thinking. Looking back, our world seems to be filled with apathy. People are struggling to get by. Others fear death by the police because of what they look like. Relevant to the class, one could talk about the dangers and statistics of climate change, yet no one will continue to bat an eye. From personal experiences with these kinds of scenarios, where it seems like you’re screaming into the social media void, it can be easy to be just as apathetic and quite frankly lazy as those who may have triggered it.

And that’s where empathy comes in: most people seem to care about issues that personally affect them. When talking to farmers, bring up how climate change can detriment their crops. With a working-class family from the middle of the Bible belt, explain how the wealthy folks like Donald Trump exploit and deprive workers of their rights just to make an extra buck. One could bring up how Black Lives Matter does more than seek justice for black people killed by police to people in the police community, like here in Chicago, fighting the closure of several schools on Chicago’s South Side and having a community food pantry for anyone who can’t afford groceries.

As a volunteer for the Bernie Sanders campaign, I know what it’s like to feel betrayed and used by the powerful political machine. I agree with those who disagree with me on issues when it comes to the corruption in government. And in my view, that’s why people tend to be turned off by such critical issues affecting people from every walk of life in this country. The current state of politics gives us politicans from both sides of the aisle that clearly don’t represent the people who are struggling today. While I can go on and on about the list of travesties that Donald Trump has committed while in office, I should also remind you that Democrats like Chuck Schumer, who claims to be the leader of the “Resistance” in Washington, had sold out to Republicans to reopen the federal government last month in exchange to put DACA recipients in jeopardy.

The point of this post is in part to address the issue of organizing and building a mass movement. Democrats and Republicans in Washington and elsewhere have never in the modern history of their parties created original plans that help those who suffer the most. The progress that we have made as American society have all been fueled by people-powered movements. Therefore, if a movement does not listen to its people and lacks poor organization, then it will inevitably fail. That’s where empathy comes in. When we listen to each other, as both human beings and individuals frustrated at the political climate of today, we can find commonality in our dissent, and use it to build a movement that can bring about the liberation and change that we all seek.