Aggregating Care

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Aggregating Care

by Summer Kwong

How is care understood? When treated as a noun, it often follows a specific issue, such as Child Care and Health Care. Care is a core value and virtue instilled from an early age; even in kindergartens, children are encouraged to share toys, crayons, and snacks with the saying, “sharing is caring.” To be considered a good and friendly child is to recognize the importance of sharing. The meaning behind care has evolved and expanded once we have entered a social discourse, according to the contemporary framework illustrated by Shah (2024), the common understanding of care is often the post-harm approach, meaning that care will only be given after there is proven harm. This blog explores the alternative ways and the importance of giving out care as a collective, while discussing the inherent interdependence within the collective.

Outdated Understanding Post-Harm Care

To illustrate how care functions as "post-harm"(Shah, 2024, p.11), cyberbullying may serve as one of the most compelling examples. A news piece has recently pointed out that two out of ten Hong Kong secondary school students have encountered cyberbullying in 2024, which can manifest in various ways (HK01, 2024). These include having their private information screenshot and shared with third parties or on social media, as well as the reposting or liking of articles or comments that mock, blame, attack, or insult others. Additionally, it encompasses posting or submitting content that similarly ridicules or demeans individuals on social networks. Teenagers who experienced bullying often received support after presenting evidence to trusted adults, and the support often included long-term counseling, to address the harm caused by the bullying.

Technology represents a socio-technological imaginary, characterized by collectively shared, institutionally supported, and publicly enacted visions of desirable futures. Applying this definition into the context of cyberbullying, the bully does not solely exist in the online space; it is in fact a manifestation of the bully’s daily actions and extends their behavior into cyberspace. Even if the victim disengages or removes themselves from the online social network, the impact of the bullying persists in their real-life experiences.

Individualizing Harm Versus Individualizing Care

Continuing with the example of cyberbullying, addressing harm and care solely at the individual level is not an adequate solution. Individualizing harm treats each instance of online bullying as a separate incident, the damage caused is isolated down to the affected student.

Individualizing care on the other hand, such as placing the responsibility on the teenage victim to seek help from a trusted adult, this approach shows how post-harm digital care is centered on the individual and their means of receiving support. This approach shifts the entire burden of seeking help onto the person who has been harmed.

The affected person must advocate for themselves and allow the system (in this case, both school and the intermediate social media platform) to recognize and validate their situation in order to access any form of care. However, the issue cannot be resolved merely by punishing the student who engaged in bullying, as this approach overlooks the broader context and systemic factors that contribute to such behavior. Addressing the problem requires a collaborative effort, not just individual actions.

Collective Care Practice

To effectively combat cyberbullying, or any violence on digital social platforms, it is essential to recognize that cyberspace and social media are not solely designed for teenagers. Social media as a technology is collectively shared, all actions and comments of the mass internet users can influence teenagers as they navigate not only their school environments but also broader social spheres.

In order to address digital harm with care, it is crucial for society as a collective to collaborate and implement a positive, zero-tolerance stance against bullying in both online and offline settings. A new form of aggregated care is needed, and it can be simply put as a “Collective Care”. Collective care, which is positioned as the exact opposite of individualized harm, can be understood as individuals coming together, aggregating civil society or any form or organizations and taking action to perform care.

Moving away from individual approaches and leaning towards consensus or compromise care, is essential in addressing the digital challenges and harms we currently face. By shifting from the reactive post-harm approach, this blog series reframes digital harm as a collective and systematic issue that necessitates a unified effort to effectively address.

This is not to suggest that this blog series is opposed to individual care; rather, the proposed collective care represents a culmination of those individual acts of care. The blog argues that collective care should not be perceived as distinct from individual care but also emphasizes a shared responsibility and communal approach to addressing the digital crisis before harm was caused. Consensus and compromise care needed to be carried out, because it involves considering the needs and well-being of the group as a whole, rather than focusing solely on individual concerns. This shift from individual to collective care highlights the importance of collaboration, mutual understanding, and working towards common goals for the benefit of all involved.

Interdependency in Collective

If the aforementioned description of performing collective care appears vague, we may seek insights that could help develop a more nuanced vocabulary surrounding the concept. Borrowing a Chinese idiom containing verbs that related to care, “mutual help and protection” (sau2 mong6 soeng1 zo6, 守望相助), which can be respectively translated to “guard”(sau2, 守), to “observe” (mong6, 望), to “depend on each other” (soeng1, 相), and to “help” (zo6, 助) in English. It embodies the concept of community members watching out for one another and providing support in times of need. Interestingly, this Chinese idiom resonates with the principles of The Care Manifesto (The Care Collective, 2020), which has been a significant source of inspiration for this blog series. The text has provided new concepts of care, shifting it from an individual focus to a more communal approach,

“By care, however, we not only mean ‘hands-on’ care, or the work people do when directly looking after the physical and emotional needs of others – critical and urgent as this dimension of caring remains. ‘Care’ is also a social capacity and activity involving the nurturing of all that is necessary for the welfare and flourishing of life. Above all, to put care centre stage means recognising and embracing our interdependencies.” (The Care Collective, 2020, p. 13)

Centering care and embracing interdependencies is vital, as we all rely on each other in society. A notable example is the Care Lab workshop developed by Leeker and Schütze (2024), which provides a framework for a Theory of Care. Their workshops encourage participants to engage in both theoretical reflection and experiential activities, exploring the complexities and ambivalences of care. They position care as a cultural technique that fosters social and political balance while also serving as a source of resistance against existing structures and envisioning alternative futures.

“Walk in Space” by Digital Narrative Studio

"Walk in Space" is a conceptual group exercise in the workshop that encourages participants to engage in care and illustrate their interdependence. It begins with participants walking at a regular pace, then experimenting with speeds from slow to running, all while ensuring safety and avoiding accidents. In confined spaces, participants are tasked with evenly filling the area, ensuring that no gaps remain. The main goal is for everyone to share the responsibility of occupying the space, observing each other's movements and moving together as part of a larger whole.

The group develops a sequence of movements that starts with a brisk walk, gradually slows to a synchronized pace, and eventually comes to a complete stop. From this stillness, the group accelerates together, moving as one until they slow down again to another moment of stillness. Achieving this flow of acceleration, deceleration, and stillness cohesively takes time.

To succeed in "Walk in Space," each participant must “to guard, to look, to depend on each other, to help” (sau2 mong6 soeng1 zo6, 守望相助), contribute their own rhythm, and adjust to the collective speed. While this may seem straightforward, participants may find that compromising at their own pace, especially when the group struggles to synchronize, can lead to frustration.

"Walk in Space" invites individuals to engage in care, building consensus and compromise while navigating the nuances of this process. Participants role-play as seekers of care and as part of a collective responsible for providing it. The experience encourages a reevaluation of care as a reciprocal connection that requires active participation from all sides. Individuals learn to adapt their speed and establish common ground, fostering resilience, adaptability, and a deeper understanding of the group's dynamics.

Care Aggregators Produce Collective Care

The COVID-19 outbreak serves as a poignant example of the interdependency inherent in collective care, illustrating how society can come together to address significant challenges. The pandemic highlighted that overcoming it required a united effort.

In Hong Kong, various facets of care were pooled to cultivate resilience. Essential workers provided vital services, with fire and police departments assisting patients in accessing isolation facilities, and nurses managing the surge in COVID-19 cases. Food delivery workers supported social distancing, while some restaurants offered free meals to marginalized groups.

During the fifth wave, many domestic helpers faced homelessness after being asked to leave their accommodation or were dismissed upon testing positive.

NGOs stepped in to assist over seventy domestic helpers by providing shelter, supplies, and support for their return home. In response to their hardships, Hong Kong citizens organized fundraising efforts and donated supplies to help these workers (Christian Times, 2022).

Reflecting on the collective efforts during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic reveals valuable lessons for future challenges. One key takeaway is the power of solidarity and collaboration. By pooling resources and uniting towards a common goal, communities can build resilience. Additionally, identifying vulnerable groups early can help establish strong networks and partnerships, enabling diverse communities to navigate crises effectively.

Moving Forward

“Care is our individual and common ability to provide the political, social, material, and emotional conditions that allow the vast majority of people and living creatures on this planet to thrive – along with the planet itself.” (The Care Collective, 2020, p. 13)

Care should be aggregated by observing, engaging and performing. Extending care from an individual level to a larger context of both social and digital space. It is time for us to relearn what care could be, recognize the nuances within the collective and understand care should transcend being merely a response following a crisis; it should be embraced as an action that we as a collective proactively engage in before crises arise. It is time for us to turn “Care” from noun to verb.

References:

• The Care Collective.  (2020). The care manifesto: the politics of interdependence. Verso.
• Christian Times. (2022, April 4). Ran yi wai yong wu jia ke gui xu qishen zhi suo li hang hui tigong bingchuang xie jin hui mu kuan juanzeng wuzi [Action will be provided to the homeless foreign domestic helpers who are infected by the epidemic and need shelter. The Hospital Bed Association will raise funds and donate materials]
• HK01 (2024, May 26). Diaocha | 20%de zhongxuesheng ceng zaoshou wang lubali ling. Yi ming 16 sui nvhai bei wu chenghuan you “gongzhu bing”, wufang xunqiu bangzhu [Survey | 20% of middle school students have been bullied online. A 16-year-old girl was falsely accused of having "princess disease" and had no way to seek help]
• Shah, N. (2021, May 11). Weaponization of Care.
• Tam, D.,  Leeker M., Schutze. K., & Shah. N. (2024). WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT CARE. Notes from the First AuthEx Fellowship featuring Daisy Tam,  Martina Leeker, Konstanze Schütze, and Nishant Shah held at the Digital Narratives Studio, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. March 20-26, 2024.