Collective Interest Versus Personal Glory
Dr Santosh Kumar Mohapatra
Many progressive people are fighting and organising movements in different ways for social change. However, I have observed a disturbing tendency.
Instead of focusing on how much success we have achieved, how far we have pushed back our adversaries, how much the movement has advanced, or how much progress society has made, some people seem more concerned about how much publicity they have received, how long they have been allowed to speak, and how much importance others have attached to them.
When personal recognition, visibility and importance become more important than the actual achievements of a movement, its collective purpose is undermined.
The real measure of a struggle is not how prominently an individual figures in it, but how much it contributes to advancing the movement, defeating injustice and improving people’s lives.
A movement should be judged by its collective achievements, not by the personal glory of its participants. When individual interests take precedence over collective interests, the cause itself becomes a casualty.
Ultimately, the question we must ask ourselves is this: Are we fighting to advance the cause, or are we using the cause to advance ourselves?
