There are many collectives that claim to operate by consensus when they
have, in fact, only adopted a few aspects of the process while overlooking
its fundamental core: equality, respect, mutual acceptance, and an open
forum for the exchange of ideas. For instance, a group might look to
consensus primarily as a means of voting on proposals -- declaring, as a
result, that all decisions must be unanimous -- while it fails to encourage
or allow the free expression of opinions. In that situation, consensus has
been subverted. Rather than being a means to ensure that everyone's voice is heard, consensus becomes a coercive tactic to shore up
the power of a self-appointed elite.
In other instances, consensus is not deliberately abused but simply falls
prey to vagueness and misunderstanding. For example, group members may
believe that if everyone cannot agree on a particular outcome for a given
situation, then the proposal that was made to deal with that situation
should simply be dropped, and the issue remains unaddressed. Consensus
should encourage a resolution to which all members can consent, not a form
of resignation, for lack of unanimity, that leaves the status quo
intact.
Collectives that use consensus often rely on the assumption that the process
is intuitively understood by the participants. A group might function quite well without
studying the process too closely, until a problem occurs and the group's
collectivity, or sense of working together, falls to pieces. Attention to process is
never more important than in times of crisis, but by the time a rift has
occurred, it's usually too late to cobble together a set of procedures for the
collective to follow. In most cases, the unequal group dynamics that derail
a collective during difficult circumstances have been at play since
long before the problems became obvious.
Our aim is to shed light on some of the imbalances and related power
struggles that are often hidden under the cloak of consensus. We are doing
this in order to help group members correct such problems as they
strive for true democracy and equality.