2nd

I'd like to start by thanking everyone who reached out after yesterday's newsletter. I never knew Samuel Beckett would resonate so strongly.

I'd like to start by thanking everyone who reached out after yesterday's newsletter. I never knew Samuel Beckett would resonate so strongly. Anyway, since I turned 18, I hadn't thought of a curfew applying to me or any of my peers. Yet, here we are. 

A city of over 8 million must be hunkered down before 8 pm tonight until 5 am until Sunday June 7th.

Whether one thinks it is necessary or not, it is unquestionably a bad sign. It recalls dark periods of history. It hasn't happened since 1943 , and again highlights a system that, for millions of people, was broken long before any of us heard of the Coronavirus. This is particularly troubling as physical laws are out of our control. So if one is stranded on a desert island, no amount of faith or want can make saltwater quench your thirst; paper currency cannot be ingested as sustenance, nor can anyone flap their arms and fly. 

The social contract, and all that it entails, is only as binding as we, collectively, make it. It's how we determine what rights people have, what laws are, and how we express our values. There are, of course, lots of things that go into this complex unwritten contract. It differs across the world based on norms, values and customs in countries, states, cities, or any other designation of governing body. It can mean that a single dollar is enough to buy a house, or it can mean that everyone gets healthcare or even why words mean what they mean.

No matter the example for a social system/contract to be sustainable, it requires some degree of consent from the governed. When it comes to governing, I don't mean being necessarily supportive of a policy or action in society. Consent can be achieved through passive means and even collective ignorance, through fear and intimidation, or through a simple analysis of inadequate resources. Unlike physical laws, usually after persistent and wide-scale failings, these social, and therefore human, systems break down. 

At 8 pm, we will witness the results of a system breaking down, and It's not easy to fathom. I won't pretend to be an optimist, but I take some solace in that that you, I, and anyone reading this are human and part of an evolving social contract. Therefore, we have the collective resources (not just those reading) to change the system. It's not going be easy, but in whatever formal and creative roles I have I will do my best to bind us to each other.

It's the only option we have, even if that means simply failing better until we try again.

This is the web archive of a newsletter originally sent by email to Brooklyn Community Board 6 subscribers on Tuesday, June 2, 2020. The email edition may contain additional event listings and links.