activism and academia

As an activist and an academic I think I can speak to this issue a bit.

There are concrete reasons that activists do not look to academics for 
guidance. One reason, mentioned previously, is that academics tend to have a 
feeling of superiority over the people they are working with. But 
ultimately, I think this is minor.

The major reason for this divide is that so many academics who talk, teach, 
and research about social change are not active in any movements. This leads 
activists to believe that most academics are either irrelevant or 
hypocrites. If academics want their views to matter to activists, they need 
to be involved in activism. Teaching, research, and writing is not enough. 
When more academics get involved in local struggles, their views will become 
known, respected, and acted upon.

Erik Loomis
University of New Mexico
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