A Declaration by Concerned Left Academics about China

赖瑞青 Larrikin unloads on the Laptop Left

Today’s geopolitical crises - such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine - have inspired a flurry of activity from the western left. By “activity” we don’t mean the rallying of a left constituency against global fascism, or political lobbying, or volunteering to support refugees and dissidents fleeing oppression. Nor do we mean support for Ukrainian socialists, feminists, and LGBT activists literally fighting for their lives against a fascist Russian invasion, urgently calling for more weapons to defeat it.

By “activity” we mean open letters.

There is a lot to be said for a western left open letter. Producing one expends fewer calories than other activism does. In fact, the letter’s moral clarity is guaranteed by the calory-saving expedient of not consulting its intended beneficiaries. The letter itself is a perfect vehicle for broadcasting virtuous intent, which is no mean currency among the western left. In the air-conditioned comfort of a campus office or a Starbucks cafe, the clack-clack-clack of a laptop and a single-minded mission to call out western imperialism can also drown out the voices of mean foreigners who say things like “fuck leftist westplaining”.

Recently we at Pervy Titillations discovered a draft of such an open letter, addressed by a coalition of Australian left academics to opponents of the Chinese Communist Party regime. This “Declaration by Concerned Left Scholars on China Human Rights” displays all the virtues of the western left open letter type described above. Whether or not it deserves mean responses like “Shut.The.Fuck.Up.” from its intended beneficiaries - Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kongers, Taiwanese, and Chinese dissidents - we leave that for our readers to decide.

You can read the open letter here.¹

1. Again, and with due deference to Poe’s Law - this is a parody.