Record VD_CR30: Crisis Denial Assemblages
Location: Ruins of abandoned universities; collapsed community centers; e-waste landfills.
Era: Early Denial Era (1965-1990) → Reckoning Years (2060-2017)
Classification: Epistemic Control / Technological Sedation
Summary: Found across both physical// digital ruins where ecological, social, and epistemic crises were minimized or strategically ignored. Curricula, social media, and community campaigns confirm that knowledge of collapse was widespread, yet response was consistently muted. Schools stayed open despite failing infrastructure. Electricity was rationed to maintain illusions of normalcy. Digital sedatives (e.g., social media, video games, VR, AI) were deliberately used to absorb dissent. Early manifestos (e.g., the Slow Science, the Fair Digital Kazi, the SWANA) warned of inequitable care and accelerating environmental degradation – largely ignored.
Excerpts:
“We thought we were shielding children and youth…”
“Youth were given Fridays to protest - like it was an extracurricular activity.”
“Climate change began to be seen as a conspiracy, not a condition.”
Interpretive Notes:
These Assemblages illustrate how epistemic control and technological sedation silenced youth, women, and ecological stewards, preserving the appearance of stability.
Postscript:
By 2070, collapse and generational trauma were undeniable. The refusal to center emergent knowledge was a central driver of breakdown.