I’m kind of sick of the “fringe element” argument. It goes something like this. Group of people attend event. Elements of said group engage in behavior that is unbecoming of ladies or gentlemen. Then the powers associated with said group claim that the unbecoming behavior is not representative of the group at large. They are, in effect, a “fringe element” of the greater group. This supposedly relieves the remaining majority from any responsibility concerning the actions of the fringe element. Very clever. Very clever, indeed.
But here’s the problem. A group’s majority often has more control in these situations than they let on. It’s comical when the majority acts victimized by the behavior of a minority group as if they are powerless to do anything. If the element in question is truly a fringe element, then the remaining majority, if so moved, has the power to assert its dominant belief that certain behavior is improper. Sadly, often the majority is not so moved, and their silence speaks volumes. Any group that is unwilling to use its voice to drown out obscene fringe elements deserves to be tarnished until it learns to responsibly use its collective voice. Ignoring ignorance is a conscious decision that allows ignorance to fester. We see this time and time again.
Imagine that you are in the stands watching your favorite team, or in a crowd watching your favorite politician find new ways to say nothing. A group of people to your right start yelling all types of highly improper obscenities. We’ll call them the fringe element. If you believe that the fringe element doesn’t represent the views of the vast majority of your group, what do you do? If your answer is nothing, as frequently is the case, then I have a few observations: (1) Doing nothing suggests that the majority may not find the behavior as offensive as they’ll later claim when they inevitably have to explain that the fringe doesn’t represent the greater movement. In fact, if others outside of the group don’t draw attention to improprieties, the larger group will infrequently self-police itself. (2) You have little credibility when you complain about a fringe group tarnishing the reputation of the greater group if you are not willing to stand up and confront those tarnishing your reputation.
Next time you hear the fringe element argument, whether applied to tea parties, football terraces, or any other regular gatherings, don’t buy it. Ask yourself what is being done by the members of the greater group to quell the fringe voices. If the answer is not much, reserve your sympathy for others. And if you find yourself part of a group pointing fingers at a fringe element, you might want to ask yourself what you can do other than shifting the blame on others.
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