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A thread on whataboutism. After the brutal suppression of pro-democracy protests in Moscow, some commentators have been quick to draw attention to the yellow vests etc, as in: see, you do it in the West, too. Here is why this comparison is not valid. 👇🏿
Whataboutism in not necessarily always wrong. For example, when Russia gets itself involved in Syria, it is reasonable to ask the critics of this intervention: what about the US actions in Iraq or Libya? These do not of course excuse the Russians but the comparison is valid.
That is because the US broke international law in the cases of Iraq and Libya, and set a precedent for Russia and others. I can understand whataboutism in cases like this.
But the dispersal of protesters in Moscow is in a different category. Russia does not have democratic legitimacy, which can only be obtained through free and fair elections. Ipso facto, anything that the government does is illegitimate, including any use of force.
In France protesters have the option of taking their grievances to the polls and voting in a government that they like. All brutality is bad but illegitimate brutality is the worst of all. This is not to excuse police brutality; merely to say: do not compare apples and oranges.
A broader point: let's not set the West as a gold standard. The United States, for instance, not only has deep problems with the electoral process (e.g. the electoral college) but its political discourse is deeply polarised and suffers from extremist, xenophobic rhetoric.
If I were selecting a democracy to live in, the US would be far down the list. It's frankly appalling what we've seen there. Freedom is not American. Freedom is just well... freedom.
So when people tell: but what about...[your favourite whataboutist place], my answer: I don't give a s**t about that place. I care about what's happening here and now. Let's stay focused on this.
