The terms “resilience” and “grit” have become the greatest honorifics — praising individual pluck and survival instincts. But focusing on these traits skews conversations away from equity. And for those who fail to thrive, there is an implied lack of character.
Alissa Quart discusses the way in which ideas of ‘grit’ and ‘resiliance’ have replaced conversations around structural problems and the issue of inequality. This is something that Ronald Purser touches on in his questions around mindfulness.