Tisza Islands

I have only recently become aware of the idea of the Tisza Island, which played a significant role in the elections in Hungary this spring. In short, community, however small or large, regardless of its fundamental reason for being (think bowling league or cafe klatch or soup kitchen) allows everyone to have a voice, and to not feel that they are alone.

While I do believe that social media plays an important role in connecting like-minded people, it very much puts us into silos where we no longer communicate with those who are not like-minded. Couple that with the capitulation of the mainstream media to its owners and you have a recipe for propaganda rather than news. Emotion over facts.

The idea of the Tisza Island is hardly new. It can be directly compared to samizdat in Soviet Russia, for instance - typing minutes from clandestine meetings on onion paper such that there is no trace of its provenance. And if you knew someone who felt the same way as you, you would hand it to them to read and that became their ticket into the next meeting. The underlying aspect of this is to spend time with people who want to talk about things. To argue about things. To persuade others of their belief that things are just not right here. And in an environment that quashes dissent, either through propaganda or a baton, it is really, really hard to be open about this.

So you start a knitting club. And by all appearances it is just that. But while you are sitting with other people knitting you invariably start talking. And through conversation you get to know the other members. And this allows for one to open up about how they feel. And you might tell someone else about your knitting club and that you think they would like the company. And for each of the people who join you have provided an atmosphere that allows for give and take and a sense of belonging. It gives hope to someone who thought they were an outcast for thinking they were the only one who felt this way. And you might not always agree with someone, because we are human and individuals, but you listen to them just the same and you absorb that into your own way of thinking whether you are aware of it or not. And this sense of community has power. And when it is tapped from the outside is it even more powerful. We can overcome virtually anything if we don't try to go it alone.

Where, then, are our Tisza Islands? Everywhere, literally, and we need desperately to embrace them. The COVID pandemic sent us all home, and that isolation was really bad for us. Our species needs community, and we need it in a very physical sense. Much like dogs lie on one another when they sleep, we require that same physical nourishment of contact with other people. Facebook and TikTok are all well and good for expressing oneself, but they are a far cry from having that same commentary face-to-face. Gentility and civility and humility are not character flaws.

So go join a club, or volunteer some of your time and talent. Get out into the world and share yourself, and recognize someone else fully. It is ever so much more satisfying than a blast from your phone. It nurtures the best parts of ourselves.