#040: Identity Politics & Mental Health (w/ Asad Haider)

For this episode we invited Asad Haider on to talk about identity politics and mental health. Haider wrote a book called Mistaken Identity in 2018, which weaves in a blend of personal narratives and scholarly analysis; Haider shares on the one hand the "lived experiences" of being on the receiving end of racism having grown up in a Pakistani immigrant family in post-9/11 America, and on the other a deep challenge for the left to consider whether modern identity politics are capable of significantly and positively transforming society.

We ask Haider if he thinks there has been cultural and interpersonal progress on the left from the now relatively normalized integration of mental health and trauma therapy language into identity politic discourse (ie, invalidation, trigger, safe space, micro-aggression). Haider argues that there's a mistake in assuming there are more similarities than differences for people with "the same identities," and that operating on this assumption often leads to ineffective politics. Harriet and Max try to balance the need to acknowledge the psychological significance of identity while understanding the limitations of identity as a form of politics.

Asad Haider is a founding editor of Viewpoint Magazine. He is the author of Mistaken Identity. His writing can be found in The Baffler, n+1, The Point, Salon, and elsewhere.

Read about Haider's work here, here, and here:
https://www.versobooks.com/books/2716-mistaken-identity
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/may/31/mistaken-identity-by-asad-haider-review
https://theintercept.com/2018/05/27/identity-politics-book-asad-haider/

Two of Haider's more recent writings:

https://saaganthology.com/Emancipation-and-Exhaustion
https://viewpointmag.com/2019/12/16/on-depoliticization/

Please give us your feedback on this discussion at itsnotjustinyourhead@gmail.com. Support our podcast at patreon.com/itsnotjustinyourhead.

ATTENTION! This is a Boring Dystopia/Obligatory 'don't sue us' message: This podcast provides numerous different perspectives and criticisms of the mental health space, however, it should not be considered medical advice. Please consult your medical professional with regards to any health decisions or management.