THE FORUM

AUTHENTICITY AND SPEAKING OUT IN THE DIGITAL ERA

Lynnette Lounsbury and Caitlin Carey discuss how to steward authenticity and speaking out in a time when opinions are at our fingertips.

CAITLIN CAREY: This is such a relevant topic to me; it is something I have often been thinking about and delving into the past year or so. To begin, I believe being authentic means that what one believes is congruent with what one says, and what one says is congruent with what one does. How one acts should be a direct indicator of how they feel and what they believe. These core beliefs define us, and they must be true and substantial. This core belief could be as simple as AFL is better than rugby or as deep as believing in intersectional equality. In today’s day and age, it seems so simple for people to form beliefs as there has been an influx of quick and easy media for us to consume. Children, youth, and adults alike are forming firm opinions based on information they read on Facebook, Instagram or Buzzfeed, rather than journal articles, primary documents, or books. This can be incredibly toxic, especially when it comes to topics regarding politics and religion.

In saying this, I do not believe social media (or media in general) is all bad. It can be an incredible platform to read about or see people that are different to us and hear their points of view. After all, one cannot make an informed decision if they only are aware of one choice. We cannot be knowledgeable about the world and form real beliefs if we do not experience anything outside of our “normal”. So, while I do believe social media can be a massive negative when it comes to making informed and knowledgeable decisions (and forming core beliefs), I do believe it has a place to broaden our horizons and see other points of view. Whether we agree with what we see or hear is irrelevant, it is important to hear it and learn more about others and ourselves. I stay authentic to myself by making sure my beliefs are well researched, well informed and realistic. As well as, ensuring that what I say and how I behave align with these core beliefs and values. This is definitely hard, and I find myself slipping more than I want but that’s part of being human and part of learning. But I whole-heartedly find it easier to stay true and authentic when I know I have a reason to believe what I do.

LYNNETTE LOUNSBURY: I agree with

Caitlin’s definition of authenticity – it is a strong connection between beliefs and actions, really living out the ideas that are meaningful to you and I find it is much harder to practice than it actually sounds. I have strong beliefs about social equality, the environment, and race and gender equality, but always speaking out, always making considered choices about what I purchase and how I live is time-consuming, emotionally draining and at times terrifying, and so living authentically is actually something that comes at a cost. I do try hard to stay flexible and to let empathy guide me. When I learn more about someone else’s life and situation, I allow my beliefs and actions to evolve to encompass this new information and understanding. I’ve learned that one of the most beautiful things is finding out you were wrong about something and being able to change. It feels like enlightenment and growth and it feels strong.

I’ve actually found social media incredible for broadening my perspective. Of course, there is a lot of time-wasting nonsense on there, but I have tried over the last couple of years to specifically follow voices I don’t hear in my everyday life, particularly activists for under or misrepresented groups. I follow disability community activists, people fighting for racial and gender equality, people from the trans and queer community, body positivity activists, environmentalists, immunologists etc. I try to make sure I am listening to a lot of different voices and it has taught me a lot (specifically how much I don’t know about other people’s experiences!). It does regularly make me question my beliefs and I think that is valuable – we SHOULD question our beliefs if they conflict with evidence or if they restrict someone else’s freedoms or lives. I question myself daily and I really hope it makes me a wiser person. That said – there is some toxic noise on the internet as well and I do curate out anything that is dangerous or exhausting in its messages of hate, fear or of conspiracies with absolutely no basis in fact. I absolutely agree with Caitlin that evidence, experience and listening to the lived perspectives of others helps keep my beliefs as authentic as possible.

CC : Wow, Lynnette makes an incredible point. It can absolutely be time-consuming, emotionally draining, and terrifying to live a truly authentic life. I find this especially true when communicating with friends and family whom I know do not share my views. The number of topics that are “off-limits” especially in the church, is astronomical. Something I have really struggled with recently is knowing how to be authentic when I think/know that my personal views do not align with my church or even the bible. Some topics that come to mind are racial equality, gender equality, sexual equality, these are topics that many churches are continually disagreeing over. So, what do you do when you love a church, but you are passionately for something that they are passionately against? I am still figuring out the answer to that question and many more, but for now, I am comfortable in the knowledge that God is the most important aspect of religion, not the church. And one does not need to agree with everything in order to be a member. I also believe this applies to any area of life, you do not need to have all the same beliefs/values as your friends, family, or colleagues in order to still be a “member” of the group. In fact, sometimes having differing views can be beautiful as you can learn so much from one another. Being open to learning about other people’s lives and experiences is vital in living an authentic lifestyle. As Jason Hinze loves to tell us EDUC students, we are all lifelong learners.

LL :Caitlin is right – it is hard to be out of alignment with people you care about. I do think being authentic in the face of disagreement is something you become more comfortable with over time. I have also learned that if you take on ideas and beliefs you are taught and don’t actively test them against evidence and experience, you can find yourself in situations where you are clearly in the wrong and hurting someone else because you never actually considered or understood their experience. I think the most important way to test an opinion in the end is against love – am I showing love in the way I act in this situation? Jesus actively broke many religious taboos to show love and I think it was his way of pointing out that nothing matters more than compassion for other people. I try to remember that when I speak, act, vote and give.