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Slow violence
Violence which occurs gradually and is not necessarily visible / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Slow violence is violence which occurs gradually and is not necessarily visible. Slow violence is incremental and is dynamic across time,[1][2] in contrast with a conception of general violence as an event or action that is immediate, explosive and spectacular.[3] Outcomes of slow violence include environmental degradation, long-term pollution and climate change.[3] Slow violence is also closely linked to many instances of environmental racism.[4]
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The origins of the concept of slow violence can be traced back to the 1960s with the introduction of the idea of structural violence. In 1969, Johan Galtung conceived of structural violence.[5] Some views include that structural violence and slow violence are closely linked, as structural inequality can morph into forms of slow violence.[1] However, slow violence is thought to be different from structural violence, as slow violence occurs over a period of many years or generations.[5]
The term slow violence itself was coined by Rob Nixon in his 2011 book Slow Violence and the Environmentalism of the Poor.[3] Nixon defines slow violence as "a violence that occurs gradually and out of sight, a violence of delayed destruction that is dispersed across time and space, an attritional violence that is typically not viewed as violence at all".[3]:ā2ā Rob Nixon states that people lacking resources or people who are living in poverty are the main casualties of slow violence, as it is "built on the bedrock of social inequality".[3] Use of the term has since transitioned to involve applications outside of environmental concerns.
Interpretations of slow violence are varied. Thom Davies challenges the idea that slow violence is 'out of sight', but that instead it could be out of sight to a particular person or people.[1] He[1] contrasts an immobile and fixed nature of structural violence with his and Nixon's[3] ideas of a geographically and temporally dynamic movement of slow violence over time. Davies also states that a lack of understandings of process, interactions, and effects can result in slow violence.[1] Ahman produces work that contributes to the shared idea that both slow violence and its responses are characterized by manipulations of time.[2] Shannon O'Lear provides another definition stating that slow violence is indirect and latent, and that "it can result from epistemic and political dominance of particular narratives or understandings."[6]
Digital slow violence is characterized by the gradual and often unnoticed adverse effects in the digital realm, such as extended online harassment and unauthorized sharing of personal information, which collectively can affect individuals' well-being over extended periods.