Comment on Getting Off with the Luddites: Hanging with NYC’s tech-critical youth cultural front

• ShaggySnacks@lemmy.myserv.one ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Despite their modern reputation, the original Luddites were neither opposed to technology nor inept at using it. Many were highly skilled machine operators in the textile industry. Nor was the technology they attacked particularly new.

  The Luddite disturbances started in circumstances at least superficially similar to our own. British working families at the start of the 19th century were enduring economic upheaval and widespread unemployment. A seemingly endless war against Napoleon’s France had brought “the hard pinch of poverty,” wrote Yorkshire historian Frank Peel, to homes “where it had hitherto been a stranger.” Food was scarce and rapidly becoming more costly. Then, on March 11, 1811, in Nottingham, a textile manufacturing center, British troops broke up a crowd of protesters demanding more work and better wages.

  As the Industrial Revolution began, workers naturally worried about being displaced by increasingly efficient machines. But the Luddites themselves “were totally fine with machines,” says Kevin Binfield, editor of the 2004 collection Writings of the Luddites. They confined their attacks to manufacturers who used machines in what they called “a fraudulent and deceitful manner” to get around standard labor practices. “They just wanted machines that made high-quality goods,” says Binfield, “and they wanted these machines to be run by workers who had gone through an apprenticeship and got paid decent wages. Those were their only concerns.”

  Luddites didn’t have issues with technology. The issue was how technology was being used to suppress wages and erode labor rights. A modern day Luddite would still have a phone and an email address they just wouldn’t use AI or social media.

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• A_be_seedy@beehaw.org ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  The article talks a lot about how the modern movement isn’t an outright rejection of tech. Rather, it’s a rejection of Big Tech. Which is a really nuanced approach.

  The fediverse is equally a rejection of Big Tech, but not a rejection of tech.

  The Fediverse, as far as I’ve seen does not have any localized communities, and whatever it does have, its not like reddit where every town over 50,000 people has a sub reddit that gets posted to at least monthly.

  The article talks about the Luddite club in NYC, and it mentions one of the goals of the movement as creating a channel for people to be able to find in-person events, without needing to go on [Big Tech owned] social media. In NYC, one of the most densely populated cities in the world, it absolutely makes sense that traditional marketing materials will go further than trying to get people to join non-Big Tech social media, and then also want them to show up in person.

  The author highlights the good of early social media, as well. One of the examples they specifically cited was that it connected queer kids living in rural, conservative areas to other queer kids living in similarly dangerous areas. It allowed movements to happen. It is quite apparent that the Luddite Club of NYC is not serving this group of people (nor am I arguing that they should be). They are primarily focused on improving commonality within their community (which is NYC).

  After making my initial comment, I did find the Luddite club website, and found that branches exist outside of NYC, but they are primarily found on college campuses. Which makes sense - college campuses are micro-cities with high levels of walk ability and public transit access, and they’re communities that most exemplify the spirit of the Luddite club of NYC. They are full of social clubs that have weekly newsletters (via email), they have lots of networking events, in-person connections, and flyers are everywhere on a college campus. The reason I no longer do medical studies isn’t because I wanted to stop doing them, its because since college, I have not encountered a flyer with the tabs that you pull off to get a phone number.

  A more difficult place to start a Luddite club is in a shithole small town in bumblefuck USA. Why? Well, first things are more spread out, there aren’t as many 3rd spaces, and then there’s the small town everyone knows everyone bullshit rumor mills. Townies don’t like different or new groups of weird groups or whatever. I believe it’d cause a stir on a Shithole Midwest Town People in the Know Facebook page if 20 people showed up to a park wearing gnome hats. And it might grow in popularity. But very quickly it would devolve into some Christian cult lady shouting about how gnome hats are actually a sign of the Antichrist, and they’d start showing up to city council looking to ban it. If you lived in that town, every time you went on social media, you’d hear about the devil worshipping gnome hatters. Eventually, the Luddite club would get the reputation of being a group that antagonizes the fragile Christian community, and they’d start to lose support from the centrists that truly don’t care about gnome hats, but they’re just sick of the complaining. The centrists, being the cancer they are on society would see the easy solution as wanting the Luddite club to not exist, not because they think its morally wrong, but because they want to be able to enjoy their town without having a holier than thou Christian fucker bitch about gnome hats.

  There are of course the places in between God’s country and NYC. But there are still challenges. In smaller cities and suburbs, the lack of walkability leads to less effective means of communication. And a whole slew of other issues that anyone with have a brain can come up with on their own for why starting a local Luddite chapter would be more difficult than doing so in NYC. Of course, there might be some points where its easier to start a Luddite Club in smaller towns/cities too. I’d be surprised if it was easier to create a Luddite club in a smaller town or city than NYC though.

  The Luddite movement would do more for more people with an online presence. A queer kid being able to find Luddism online, is a good thing. And you can reject Big Tech online. That’s why we’re here.

  From an organizational standpoint, its also easier to locally organize when you have feedback from communities trying similar things. That’s why trade shows exist - get people in the same industry in the same room to talk and your industry will improve. Using social media to talk about how you organized in a Luddite manner can improve the Luddite cause. From reading the article, I gather that it would be possible to find the Luddite club organizers online, just maybe not on Facebook or Reddit. I don’t see their mission as saying people/businesses shouldn’t use the internet. I see their mission as people/businesses should have the autonomy to be able to not use Big Tech. Further, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’d be supportive of a coffee shop that exclusively advertises their events on their own website. I think their biggest complaint for that would be that individuals would be tied to a Big Tech device to even access the website in the first place.

  The Fediverse is, in my opinion, part of the Luddite movement, even if the connection isn’t explicit.

  But, I can see why you’d be confused, and make the comment you did, if you didn’t read the article…

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