Slow Violence and the Environmentalism of the Poor

“The insidious workings of slow violence derive largely from the unequal attention given to spectacular and unspectacular time. In an age that venerates instant spectacle, slow violence is deficient in the recognizable special effects that fill movie theaters and boost ratings on TV.”

Nixon coined the term slow violence, which means violence that occurs slowly over time and is relatively unseen. The slow violence of environmental mismanagement has the greatest impact on the most vulnerable communities because people pay more attention to the “spectacular” violence favored by modern technology than they do to “unspectacular” (or slow) violence. Nixon’s goal is to address the global community’s inattention to slow violence and the catastrophic consequences it has for already vulnerable people.

“The representational bias against slow violence has, furthermore, a critically dangerous impact on what counts as a casualty in the first place. Casualties of slow violence—human and environmental—are the casualties most likely not to be seen, not to be counted.”

One of Nixon’s key themes is the narrative monopoly that economically developed countries have on the climate crisis. Part of the reason for this monopoly is that people in these countries can easily ignore the plight of vulnerable communities when the violence unfolds slowly. Slow violence results in both human and environmental casualties. These casualties occur over time, often years after the occurrence of the catastrophic environmental event (e.g., an oil spill). As a result, these casualties are often not considered casualties. By highlighting writers from around the world who document environmental violence against vulnerable communities, Nixon hopes to demonstrate to readers the need to ensure that these communities are able to participate in the narrative around the climate crisis.